Not that he'd ever be stuck for fourball partners, but Darren Clarke could call on some particularly adept individuals to accompany him in "friendly" rounds at Sunningdale and Wentworth over the past few days in his preparations for a return to the European Tour at this week's Conte of Florence Italian Open in Milan.
Since returning from his successful American odyssey, Clarke has, for the most part, enjoyed some rest and relaxation at home . . . however, as he reappeared on the golf course over the weekend, the Ryder Cup player dragged along near-neighbours Paul McGinley, who'd missed the cut in Spain, and Colin Montgomerie for company.
Clarke took a week off after returning from the States, plays in Italy this week (he has a two-year deal with the tournament's sponsors Conte of Florence, the Italian sportswear manufacturers to endorse their range of golf clothing) and will then take next week off prior to a run of big-money tournaments in successive weeks: the Benson and Hedges at The Oxfordshire, the Volvo PGA at Wentworth and, then, the TPC of Europe in Hamburg. In fact, Clarke leads a ninestrong Irish contingent to Milan, and that number could yet be increased as Francis Howley, who is first reserve, also expects to be in the field at Castelconturbia, which is playing host to the tournament for the first time since 1991.
The Irish contenders in Italy are: Clarke, McGinley, Padraig Harrington, Ronan Rafferty, Christy O'Connor Jnr, Philip Walton, Raymond Burns, Eamonn Darcy (who has been leading Irishman on tour for the past two weeks) and Des Smyth. Howley should get in but David Higgins, who is down at sixth reserve, is unlikely to make it. O'Connor Jnr owes his place in the tournament to a sponsor's invitation. Higgins and Cameron Clark (13th reserve) face another week away from competitive action on the full tour, but are likely to resume in the Balearic islands next week.
Clarke was due to fly out from Heathrow early this morning in time to link up with Spanish Open winner Thomas Bjorn, Sweden's Robert Karlsson and Italy's Michael Reale for a skins game over the course today. Meanwhile, Ireland's World Cup-winning duo McGinley and Harrington have endured a frustrating two weeks, missing the cuts in both the Cannes and Spanish Opens. McGinley is endeavouring to regain his sharpness after a period spent recuperating from a rib injury. "Paul has only played in seven events since winning the World Cup last November," said his manager Andrew Chandler, "and he is still a little rusty. He played for a couple of weeks with the rib injury and it has just taken him a little more time than he thought to overcome the rustiness."
As things stand, McGinley doesn't intend playing in next week's Turespana Masters in Majorca. However, depending on what happens in Milan, he may reappraise the situation.
World Rankings - 1, E Els (SA) 12.17; 2, T Woods (US) 11.86; 3, G Norman (Aus) 10.00; 4, D Love III (US) 9.96; 5, C Montgomerie (Brit) 8.81; 6, J Leonard (US) 8.79; 7, D Duval (US) 8.38; 8, P Mickelson (US) 8.31; 9, N Price (Zim) 8.04; 10, T Lehman (US) 7.81; 11, J Ozaki (Jap) 7.79; 12, M O'Meara (US) 7.52; 13, L Westwood (Brit) 6.47; 14, V Singh (Fiji) 6.39; 15, S Hoch (US) 5.73; 16, M Calcavecchia (US) 5.64; 17, J Furyk (US) 5.59; 18, F Couples (US) 5.51; 19, T Watson (US) 5.50; 20, J Parnevik (Swe) 5.27.
