Captaincy completes image turnaround for traditionalist Clarke

The way Darren Clarke celebrated winning the Open Championship neatly sums up one of the contradictions at the heart of Europe’s new Ryder Cup captain.

Living up to his reputation as ’one of the boys’ who likes a drink and a smoke, Clarke had not been to bed when he turned up for a press conference the morning after his famous win at Royal St George’s in 2011.

Yet, despite all the red wine and Guinness which had been consumed, the famous trophy he was still clutching remained proudly unblemished.