John Murphy focused on his own journey on second PGA Tour start

John Murphy is sponsored by Arachas, Ireland’s largest nationwide insurance broker providing innovative car, home, and business insurance products. Arachas employs some 500 people in Ireland and is part of the Ardonagh Group, a global insurance broker. Visit www.arachas.ie for more information. ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan

Kinsale's John Murphy is determined not to get distracted by hypotheticals and focus on earning his card via the Challenge Tour as he rubs shoulders with four of the world's top 10 in this week's $9.1 million AT&T Byron Nelson near Dallas.

The Cork man earned the invitation when he was awarded the 2020 Byron Nelson Award for his "entire collegiate academic and golf career as well as his character and integrity while in college" at the University of Louisville.

In other words, he's a world-class golfer with a great head on his shoulders and he's learned from Shane Lowry and Séamus Power that he has plenty of time to make the big time at his own pace.

Power's top-10 finish at TPC Craig Ranch last season was the catalyst for an incredible run of form that's seen him win on tour and soar to 41st in the world.

But Murphy knows he must focus on his own goals, even if a dream week could open many doors. And having postponed using this invitation for an entire year, he's clearly got the patience to wait for his time to strike.

"Yeah, absolutely," Murphy said of Power as an inspiration as he prepares to make his second PGA Tour appearance this season after missing the cut in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February.

"Séamus has shown as much persistence as any Irish golfer ever that I can remember in terms of how long he had to wait for his time. What was it, three or four years ago, and he was on the Korn Ferry Tour, and it's incredible to see where he is now.

"It's not an easy thing to do, to break that top 50 in the world, and it doesn't look like he's stopping any time soon.

"It is motivating to see. I'm staying with Seamus this week and looking forward to picking his brain a bit, seeing how he goes about his job in preparation; it's obviously great to learn from some of the best in the world, so yeah, I'm looking forward to it."

While the likes of the Hojgaard twins Nicolai and Rasmus or his former college teammate Matthias Schmid have hit the ground running and established themselves on tour straight away, Murphy knows he will likely have to grind to make it.

"Obviously, I saw the likes of Mathias work incredibly hard to get where he is," added Murphy.

"I read recently that the average age when you actually get your first tour card is 28 years old, so there's a lot of cases where a lot of people are waiting it out.

"Seamus is a prime example. He didn't get his first PGA Tour card until he was in his 30s, and that's certainly more inspiration for me. I'm young, I'm 23, and as much as I don't want to sit back and be content with where I am, I'm very comfortable that I have time to figure things out and figure out what works best for me.

"Right now, I'm kind of at the stage where I'm going to show up every day and do the most I can to feel like I'm getting better. Some days that might be sitting there and taking a break, watching a movie. That's one thing I've learned from the likes of Shane.

"The year after he won the British Open, he didn't touch a golf club for maybe a month, maybe more, that winter.

"So sometimes you have to listen to yourself, listen to what works best for you, and I'm still at the stage where I'm trying to figure some of that out, but I feel like last year was a huge learning curve, and I figured out a lot about myself and that the best way is to grind, essentially. I'm looking forward to learning more."

With just over seven weeks to go to the Horizon Irish Open at Mount Juliet Estate, it would be tempting for Murphy to get caught up wondering about sponsor's invitations.

But he's wisely leaving all that to his manager, Ballybunion native Emma O'Driscoll, and focusing on getting his card via the Challenge Tour's Road to Mallorca rankings.

"If I did all that stuff, I'd drive myself insane," he said of the invitation game. "I've never played in an Irish Open, so it would be great to get that opportunity. But we'll just have to take care of business on the golf course, and the rest will look after itself."

*John Murphy is sponsored by Arachas, Ireland's largest nationwide insurance broker providing innovative car, home, and business insurance products. Visit www.arachas.ie for more information.