There are many ways to while away the hours in an airport.

You may just sit and gaze in wonder at the quirkiness of the human race as they career around in a lather trying to find their departure gate. Maybe you go to the terminal's bar and have a right good gargle to settle the preflight nerves. Or perhaps you do yourself no favours at all by leafing through the Pictorial Guide to Aviation Disasters.

Stephen Gallacher filled in this thumb-twiddling period of time by plotting a route to the Ryder Cup in a little black book. Here at Gleneagles this week, the 39-year-old has checked in among the first-class movers and shakers as golf's greatest team tussle prepares to take flight. The journey to this showpiece on Scottish soil has, at times, been turbulent, but he has finally made it to the promised land and the Scot is about to realise a lifetime ambition

"I was in Terminal 5 at Heathrow coming back from a tournament and was waiting on a delayed flight when I went into a shop and bought a notepad," said Gallacher, as he mulled over the collection of jottings he has kept along the way. "When I worked with Adam Hunter I always remembered him being a man who had a little black book to write things down in and that's what I did. It included goals such as trying to get into the majors and into the world's top 50, holing more putts etc, etc. In fact, I am acquiring quite a collection of notebooks filled with information to assist my career.

"I used the ethos of the cycling guys. If it doesn't make the bike go more quickly, then you don't do it. It was the same thing for me. If I'm doing something that isn't making me any better, then I don't do it."

In this mind-mangling game that can play havoc with the heid, Gallacher also sought the advice of John Pates, the sports psychologist who has delved into the innermost thoughts of a host of golfers down the years including the likes of Darren Clarke, Graeme McDowell and Thomas Bjorn.

For crude hackers like ourselves, who tend to shriek 'Lord, help us' at the top of the backswing, the power of positive thinking is a largely alien concept. For Gallacher, and those with a flair for this Royal & Ancient game, however, there is a great vault of upbeat information to tap into.

"John advised keeping a catalogue of my good shots," said Gallacher, who seems to have assumed the role of a golfing archivist leafing through dusty records. "His suggestion was to keep a record of my good shots on courses where I had played well; when I holed a decent putt, executed a nice 3-wood, managed a hole-in-one or a shot I'd struggled with and been able to fix. The idea is to be able to recall something positive when you're under pressure and I've been keeping notes for years."

Ahead of this week's contest at Gleneagles, Gallacher will no doubt be flicking through his notes and finding the page marked 'PGA Centenary course'. There will surely be a few musings on it, given his record in this neck of the woods. With seven top-10 finishes over the Ryder Cup's host venue since 2001, including a play-off defeat in the 2013 Johnnie Walker Championship, Gallacher has plenty of positive past experiences to draw on.

"Taking the notes is a great strategy for being able to always think of good shots and there are a few in there from Gleneagles," he said. "That's what I'm hoping will help get me through this week, recalling how I've played the course in the past. It's about having a gameplan, knowing the lines and where to hit certain shots, and where to try to leave the ball. It's about recalling where I've hit a great drive, where I've chipped in, had an eagle; anything, really. As long as you are having good thoughts, the chances are you won't have any negative ones. If you're telling your brain before you get to your ball that you've holed that putt before you've even hit it, then there's more chance of sinking it. These notes are priceless and I have a couple of books just in case I lose one. I pack them in my holdall wherever I go."

The next stop for these scribbles of golfing wisdom will be a plush suite in the Gleneagles Hotel … unless Tom Watson gets wind of this article and plots to steal them. Now that would be something to write down in a book.