Clarke promises stern challenge
Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland hits out of a bunker on the 18th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament Friday, Aug. 13, 2010, at Whistling Straits in Haven, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
DARREN Clarke is promising a stern test when the European Tour arrives in Royal Portrush for the Irish Open at the end of June.
Tour officials spent time at the course yesterday with the Open Champion on hand to offer some expert ‘opinion’.
“As someone who plays the course all the time I can show them where the obvious short cuts are,” said Clarke.
“I want it set up fair so that you get rewarded for hitting fairways.
“That is what links golf should be all about. The golf course doesn’t need much tweaking.
“It just needs some thick rough in areas were the guys will try and take things on.
“If they do so well and good but if they get things wrong, they are going to struggle to hit the green from those certain places.
“It’s going to be a tough test. But that is what Royal Portrush is like anyway.
“Hopefully we get a bit of decent weather and bit of breeze. The fairways will firm up and the greens will firm up .
For some of us that used to play in the North of Ireland Championship it will be the same sort of thing.”
Clarke has struggled in the wake of his Open Championship success but the 43-year-old is working hard to turn his performances around.
He has been spending time in the gym with trainer Jonny Bloomfield and is working with swing coach Pete Cowan today.
“It’s been disappointing, but that’s the game. I would have been saying the same sort of things this time last year,” said Clarke speaking to the BBC.
“I’d got too big. If I wanted to get properly competitive I had to get myself back into shape.
“I’m doing all the right things and I just have to stay patient and wait for it to turn around.”
Clarke’s next competitive outing will be at the World Match-play next week in Arizona. He will return to action with new caddy Phil ‘Wobbly’ Morbey on the bag after parting company with John Mulrooney.
“John and I had both been trying really hard but it wasn’t quite working. It wasn’t quite clicking,” added Clarke.
“I’ve worked with Wobbly before. He’s won at Augusta, with Woosie, and has been a friend of mine for a very, very long time.
“It will be nice to get playing well again. After the match-play I play in Honda and then Doral, that’s three big tournaments.
“After that I have a bit of a break and then I play Houston and Augusta. It’s a good run and that is part of the reason why I’m in the gym again.”
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Tuesday 29 May 2012
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