On tour with Ross Fisher
As I was discussing in my last column, I held on to my top-10 spot on the European Order of Merit for the requisite period of time, which meant I secured a place in the field at my first ever World Golf Championship event, the CA Championship at Doral last month.
It was a really good week. The Blue Monster is a tough golf course and I played pretty decent golf from tee to green, but I just wasn’t able to capitalise often enough on my good shots. Putting was tough. The greens in Florida are very grainy and coming from Europe that’s something I’m just not used to. It makes the greens quite tricky to read and it definitely takes time to acclimatise, but on the whole I was satisfied with my week’s work. I finished 5-under par, tied-34th in the strongest field you’ll find anywhere in the world. I always look at ways I can improve on my performances, but at the same time I have to take some positives from that experience. I know it will benefit me next time.
I also think that little taster in Miami has given me an even greater appetite for more of the same. Seriously, everything about it was special; from the way we were looked after, to the facilities and the way the tournament was run, the hotel we stayed in, the car we were given for the week; you know, it was a real step-up in class. It wasn’t quite as special as a major, such as the Open Championship which is out of this world, but to be honest, it wasn’t far behind.
And that’s where I really want to be. If I play well and perform, I’ll be rewarded with places in the WGC events and all of the majors. There are seven of those ‘biggies’ every year and that’s definitely one of my immediate goals, to be teeing it up in them on a regular basis.
After Doral I made a bit of a last-minute decision to fly to Dubai and make the most of the good weather. It proved to be a good move, because while we were out there I know London got hit by some snow and some pretty awful weather. That would have put a serious dent in my practice routine and, at this time of the year I really can’t afford to let that happen. I need to be working hard on my game.
So Dubai was good – a case of the right place at the right time, I think. I travelled out there with a good friend of mine from Wentworth, Ryan Harrison, and we stayed at the Arabian Ranches and played golf every day. We played the Emirates course, the Four Seasons, the Montgomerie, Dubai Creek and obviously the Ian Baker-Finch course at Arabian Ranches where we were staying. That course is 7,700 yards from the back tees; a serious test of golf! We also played at the newly opened Els Club and enjoyed that a lot. Ernie has really done a great job there.
Anyway, I’m now at Wentworth and it seems like I brought some good weather home with me. Over the next three or four days I’ll be playing and practising with my coach Kristian, before I head off to China at the weekend for a double-header, the Volvo China Open and the BMW Asian Open. Then I’ve got a couple of weeks off in which I’ll be working hard to get my game in the best shape possible for a big stretch of tournaments coming up on the European Tour.
As a player this is an exciting time. I mean, this is where the European Tour really hits its stride, so to speak. Events like the Irish Open, the BMW PGA Championship, the Wales Open – they’re big tournaments with big money and plenty of world ranking points up for grabs. You really want to perform these weeks. That’s not to say you don’t give it 100 per cent every other week of the year; of course you do. But it’s just nice to think you could save your best golf for the biggest stage. That’s what every professional golfer wants, if they’re being honest.
Before I leave for China there’s obviously the small matter of a little golf tournament going on in Augusta, Georgia this weekend! I obviously used to watch The Masters when I was growing up and I loved every minute.
As a professional golfer, though, watching golf on television can be a bit of a double-edged sword. In one sense, it can be quite depressing because you desperately want to be out there yourself, playing and competing which is what we love doing. But at the same time, it does provide a big incentive; you know, it gives me the drive to do everything I can to make sure that next year I am there playing myself.
Still, I suppose I won’t be able to resist watching at least some of it this weekend…the Masters is such a great tournament it’s hard not to!
Okay, that’s it for this month’s column.
I’ll write again next month.
- Ross Fisher