McDowell seeks expert advice

Graeme McDowell intends to pick the brains of Europe’s 2004 Ryder Cup team as he prepares for the final major of the year at Oakland Hills.

McDowell, a two-time European Tour winner this year, heads into the US PGA Championship in confident mood following a top-20 finish at last month’s Open Championship and a solid week’s preparation at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio.

McDowell is confident he has the game to compete in the majors and in order to get to grips with the monster that is Oakland Hills he will try to play practice rounds with at least one of the eight heroes of Bernhard Langer’s victorious 2004 team who return to the Detroit area this week.

“I watched the Ryder Cup but I doubt if I’ll recognise much of it to be honest,” McDowell said.

“I’ve heard the set-up is tough and I’m looking forward to it. I’m driving the ball well, my iron play feels good and if I can get my short game sharp.

“I’ll see who’s around the next couple of days.”

McDowell played “a few holes” with Padraig Harrington at the Akron event, and said: “I always like to try to seek out good players like that and see if I can pick their brains, maybe someone who knows the course a little bit, maybe one of the Ryder Cup players from a few years ago. See if they can show me around a little bit.”

Having finished the Bridgestone Invitational in a tie for 56th place at five over par, the 29-year-old suggested he had learned much about tackling the majors from his tie for 19th place at Royal Birkdale.

“I’ve learned that my game’s good enough,” he said.

“I’ve had a great few months of play, my second best finish in a major and I walked away disappointed, I simply played badly, struggled on the Saturday, struggled on the greens a little bit.

“Yet I walked away with my second best finish in a major and I learned I can compete at this level with the best players in the world at the best tournaments in the world.

“I’m really feeling my game’s getting better. I hit the ball great (at Akron), I really did, coming off not really doing a whole lot last week, just resting and trying to unscramble my mind a little bit for the second half of the season.”

McDowell will take the same mindset into the US PGA on Thursday that he took into the Open Championship, and has been sharpening up his short game.

“I’m going in again the same way I was going into Birkdale – that I’ve got the game to compete,” he said.

“I’ve always talked about the short game being the key really to the majors and it is. You’ve got to learn how to get the ball up and down on these fast greens.”