Luke Donald will take little satisfaction from the fact that his classiest acts of 2014 came away from the golf course. The pain of missing out on the Ryder Cup still lingers after all.
It was Donald’s reaction to being overlooked by Paul McGinley for a European wildcard pick which endeared him to the wider world. Rather than sulk, scream or moan about a failure to make it to Gleneagles, Donald offered his staunch backing – both in public and private – to the European cause. Others would not, and have not, done likewise.
“I didn’t know any other way to react than how I did,” says Donald. “I preface anything I say by admitting I was very frustrated and angry at myself, really, for not playing well enough to deserve that pick. But what is the point of stewing? Of being bitter? I will use it as a motivation, that if I am in that situation again then the same thing will not happen.
“I had backed Paul. I am a planner myself and I know Paul was going to have everything planned out to the very last detail. He is a good speaker, he is motivational; I was excited about the prospect of being on his team. He proved to be fantastic in the role.”
A family holiday meant Donald caught only glimpses of another European success. Asked if watching on as his could-have-been team-mates triumphed was tough, the reply is a firm “absolutely”. He adds: “You think of how important and how fun Ryder Cups are. I missed it.
“I had mixed emotions. It wasn’t easy, of course I was jealous. If picked, I felt like I could have made a difference to the team. But you cannot fault anyone. The wildcards performed fine but that wasn’t really a factor, anyway. I think Paul got things spot on.”
Donald’s quest to return to something like the form which saw him ranked as the best player of the world for more than 50 weeks begins this week in Shanghai. He has not played competitively since early September, with the intervening period involving some “big decisions”.
Namely, Donald has returned to the full-time coaching of Pat Goss after what he insists was an amicable split with Chuck Cook. In essence, the 36-year-old has understood that his form and processes of 2011 were good enough to win major championships. Stars aligning are more pertinent than a technical overhaul.
“Things do need to fall into place,” says Donald of his desire finally to win a major. “I think I have to get away from putting those events on a pedestal. I have got to think of the little things that will all contribute to making me better.
“I won’t go back to exactly how I swung the club before; there was some good stuff with Chuck that will stay in there. But I realised it is very difficult to break down 25-30 years of your golfing DNA. Not many do it. I have played through the Tiger Woods era where he has done it three or four times and made it look reasonably easy. There are a lot more examples of people trying such a change and it not working.”
He adds: “I have no regrets. I felt at the time that it was something I had to try the change; either I just couldn’t do it or it wasn’t for me. At times it was encouraging but from the Players Championship onwards it was a struggle and that is a hard time to implement changes, there is a lot of golf being played.
“The last couple of months of the season were a frustration, I didn’t see much progress and it was a case of Chuck trying to just get me through tournaments, which isn’t his way of coaching. It was all amicable. I talked with Chuck a bunch of times, it was just a case of not seeing enough change. It is very hard to implement big changes in your game.”
Donald has been enthused by a fresh start. Four events in the next five weeks will prove if he is entitled to be encouraged. If results once again start to mirror ability, Donald clearly still has time on his side.
Stenson’s Olympic goal
Perhaps those behind golf’s return to the Olympics should turn to Henrik Stenson to lead their public relations campaign? Fears have already been expressed that tight scheduling through the summer of 2016 may overshadow golf at Rio, or diminish the desire of leading players to participate.
Not so Stenson, who has spoken passionately about his Olympic desires. “There’s no point in me thinking about how other players will evaluate the situation,” said the Swede.
“This will be my one and only time, my only chance to play in the Olympics. I never expected an Olympic Games. It would provide the memories of a lifetime.
“There is no question I will be going if I qualify. I’ll be there for the opening ceremony, as well.”
Could Stenson carry his nation’s flag at said parade? “I don’t know if I would be trusted to do that. I think there will be some members of the team with stronger arms than me.”
