Lawrie: 'It's important to look like you're the boy – the ones that don't aren't the best'

Golf Correspondent

Tuesday 25 September 2012

You need a strong stomach for a Ryder Cup match on American soil, writes Nick Rodger.

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Nick Rodger

And it has nothing to do with the eye-watering quantities of food dished up over here. With his appetite for the game whetted again during a career renaissance that has thrust him into the world's top 30, Paul Lawrie is hungry for success in this biennial battle.

The 43-year-old, who burnished his qualifying campaign for Jose Maria Olazabal's European side with a brace of Tour triumphs this season, touched down in Chicago last night on a specially chartered flight from Heathrow ahead of this weekends joust with the USA at Medinah.The competition continues to grow in ferocity with each staging and, with both sides evenly matched, the forthcoming affair promises to be as intense and exhilarating as ever.With three days to go until the first shot is struck in anger, the Ryder Cup cauldron is simmering away nicely. It will boil over on Friday when the competitive fires of those competing take hold and raise the temperature.Having been asked to hit the very first tee shot of the 1999 match at Brookline as a Ryder Cup rookie, Lawrie knows only too well just how fraught this golfing gladiatorial arena can be. Harnessing the bundle of emotions that get stirred up is the key, particularly in the close-quarter combat of the matchplay format. According to Lawrie, it's about displaying the golfing equivalent of a poker face; don't give anything away."There's a knack and a way of making yourself look calm when inside you're churning," admitted Lawrie, the oldest player in the European team. "People say to me, 'man, you looked so cool and calm out there', but I'm just the same as everyone, I'm thinking, 'please don't cock it up'. You have to come over that you're in control, you can't let your opponent know you're in trouble. It's very important that you look as if you're the boy. The ones that don't do that, those that give it away, aren't the best."A lot has happened to Lawrie since he last appeared in the Ryder Cup 13 years ago. Like a golf ball in flight, there have been plenty of ups and downs. The loss of form which had him toiling down in the low 200s of the world rankings was hard to take but that was nothing compared to the grief and anguish caused by the passing of his former coach and dear friend, Adam Hunter, last year.Despite the tragedy and the tribulations, there have been bountiful highs. A first European Tour triumph in almost a decade at the Andalucian Open early last year provided the catalyst for an uplifting resurgence that has reaped the ultimate rewards."I think you'd be surprised by how much of it is about Adam," he added. "I felt that for the last couple of years he was alive I didn't do justice to what he did for me, so I was trying to kick on for him." Other factors he attributed to his re-emergence include his two golfing sons, Craig and Michael, and his wife, Marian. There was also the eye-opening experience of a stint behind the commentator's microphone during the last Ryder Cup in 2010. "People think they're good at things when they're not, and I knew quickly that it [commentary] wasn't for me," he said.With success has come recognition. That was not always the case for Lawrie who was, somewhat shamefully, never showered with the plaudits he truly deserved for winning the Open. "You get a lot of people coming up, more than after the Open win," admitted Lawrie, whose tireless work with his own foundation has helped bolster that profile."The Ryder Cup thing, being Scotland's top golfer. People seem to be thinking, this guy's from Aberdeen and he's done well. The foundation, too, has helped and it's increased awareness."It's just one of the many good things in the career of Paul Lawrie.

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Lawrie: 'It's important to look like you're the boy – the ones that don't aren't the best'

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