Two weeks before Rory McIlroy got his hands on the Claret Jug it was momentarily in the possession of good friend Graeme McDowell.
McDowell reluctantly agreed to be photographed with the Open Championship trophy in France and as part of the R & As new Open Championship qualifying process.
However McDowell’s now said a big ‘No’ after now being asked to pose with the Rodman Wanamaker Trophy and the prize in capturing next week’s PGA Championship.
Graeme McDowell gets his hands on the Claret Jug ahead of his successful defence on the 2014 French Open.
McDowell was approached ahead of this week’s WGC – Bridgestone Invitational if he would join a list of stars competing next week in Louisville, Kentucky to be photographed with golf’s heaviest trophy as promotional exercise for the season’s final major.
However after still experiencing reservations handling the British Open Claret Jug in Versailles ahead of his back-to-back French Open success, McDowell’s not about to put any further curse on himself adding the PGA Championship to his 2010 US Open success.
“They want us in the locker room next week to pick up the Wanamaker Trophy, and hug it and kiss it and do all these things but then part of me doesn’t want to do that,” he said.
“I would rather be kissing and hugging the Wanamaker Trophy when it’s my time to do that, and hopefully late next Sunday week.
“I did that at the recent French Open with the Claret Jug so I now feel somewhat reluctant I got close to the Claret Jug in France as I felt afterwards I want to be able to do that till hopefully win The Open and then get to bond it for the next twelve months.
“It’s not a jinx thing but more out of respect for the individual championships, so I don’t want anyone to be handing me a championship trophy to I have actually earned it.
“It was nice to look at the Claret Jug and see the names on it and go ‘woh’, and I don’t think I ever looked at a US Open trophy till I was actually handed the trophy in winning at Pebble Beach.
“And the closest I’ve come to the Wanamaker Trophy was at Sea Island in 2001 when I played in the Walker Cup and we were invited around to Davis Love 111s house for a party and he had there a replica of the Wanamaker Trophy in winning the PGA Championship in 1997.”
Aside from this week’s Gary Player Trophy, and the prize in capturing the $US 9m WGC – Bridgestone Invitational, and next week’s Rodman Wanamaker trophy, McDowell is also focussed on the gleaming Ryder Cup trophy.
McDowell is currently 11th and just two spots outside of breaking into the top-nine who will qualify automatically for Paul McGinley’s team, and being based on the PGA Tour it means McDowell’s last two bites of European Ryder Cup team cherry.
“I am going for my fourth Ryder Cup in a row, so I am excited to have the opportunity ahead of me but I’ve learned to have it in the back of my mind and it’s not something that gets me fired up every week I tee it up,” he said.
“So the Ryder Cup is something that will take care of itself.
“Generally, the game is in good shape coming off a top-10 at The Open and a ninth last week in Canada so I am excited about the next few weeks.
“And I am feeling good about the fact that I have got my schedule right this season so that I feel great energy-wise and mentally wise and I’m up for the challenge.
“Also I’ve got a baby coming in four week’s so there is a lot of good things in the air for me at the moment.”
In contrast, Tiger Woods is well outside in 70th place in his goal of qualifying automatically for the USA Team but was adamant on the eve of this Bridgestone defence he could easily relieve Tom Watson from having to use one of his ‘wildcard’ picks on the seven-time Stars and Stripes star.
“I would like to win these two events and not have to worry about a thing,” said Woods.
“That’s the plan, that’s the mind-set and that’s the focus, and we’ll see how the balls drop these next two weeks.
“Other than that, I am so far out of qualifying automatically at this stage but hopefully I can qualify for the Play Offs and then play well for those four weeks.”
