Since being appointed 2014 European Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley has found himself being congratulated at every turn during this week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Chmpionship.
Following his opening round in the UAE capital Europe’s new team leader spoke exclusive with Ireland’s three leading newspapers representatives and www.golfbytourmiss.com
NB – No part of the following interview is to be reproduced or copied without the express permission of www.golfbytourmiss.com (bernieontour@gmail.com)
Qn: Paul what has the reaction been like since Tuesday night when you were appointed European Team captain?
Ans: I’m absolutely thrilled about what’s happened and thrilled about the way the rest of the players have received me. Walking around the golf course yesterday and walking around the range and the real happiness the people had on their face when they congratulated me. I could see that it really, really was from the heart.
To be honest, if I hadn’t been appointed Ryder Cup captain I probably would never have known the esteem a lot of people have held me in.
Paul McGinley dealing now with the tasks associated with being appointed a Ryder Cup captain. (Photo – www.golfbytourmiss.com)
Qn: It must be like getting an obituary without dying? (Irish Times correspondent)
Ans: Yeah. Oh, that’s a great way of putting it. (Laughing)
Qn: What is the current number of text messages?
Ans: There were 467 when I switched it off this morning, so it’s probably about 500 by now. It’s amazing. I didn’t know so many people had my number.
Qn: How is your wife handling the decision and she must be looking forward to her part in organising all the players?
Ans: Ali (Alison) is always a background girl. She won’t be pushing herself into the forefront. She certainly will have the girls decked out in nice clothes. She’s very into her fashion but she won’t be at the forefront. She’s quite happy to let me take the lead role in what’s going on. She will do what needs to be done very much under the radar and in a very classy way.
Somebody said this would be a really classy Ryder Cup and I’d like to think if we live up to that I think the game of golf will be the winner, never mind who wins.
Qn: Does being Ryder Cup captain make any difference to your mentality or approach when you go out to play?
Ans: Not really. You know, that’s a tough golf course today. I really was off my game. I was thinking how am I going to get this down the fairway, never mind Ryder Cup captain. The big thing is just the feel good factor of the way people have responded to me is extremely humbling.
Qn: Is it possible for an individual to carry out the duties that you probably are only becoming aware of now or are you going to have to join up with a management team to give you a helping hand?
Ans: I don’t intend joining a management company but I’ll never say never, I don’t know. That’s down the road. I’ve got six major sponsors, from Ashworth andAlliance to Investec. Nearly all of them, BMW, Rolex, have been with me for well over 10 years. Some of them go back to the very first day I turned pro, like Investec, Allianz and Taylor Made. All six signed contracts to 2014 and beyond before the Ryder Cup decision was made. That means a lot to me, that they think of me so highly, irrespective of the decision, they signed passing through the Ryder Cup.
Qn: Will your brother Michael get involved?
Ans: No, he’s too busy with his own work. I’ve a got a nice little team around me. I’ve got a fulltime PA Emma who’s worked for me for about 15 years. She’s brilliant. I don’t know. I’m going to go and meet Tour when I go home and see what kind of scale and trying to divide up the workload and where it’s going to be and analyse things. I don’t know if there’s going to be a need for a management company. It’s not something I’m going to go out and do at this stage.
Qn: What about with regard to promotional and media duties?
Ans: I have the resources of the Tour to help me with that and Emma has been with me 15 years. She’s really efficient. Her name is Walshe, a good Irish name. Her father is from Kilkenny.
Qn: Any standout messages in those you have received?
Ans: I got a message from Tom, of course, but do any others stand out?
In those 400-odd messages there’s quite a lot I haven’t read yet, so I don’t know. I got one from Mickey Harte yesterday, the Tyrone manager. He’s a man I’ve never met but a man I’ve greatly admired. I sent him a message back and looked forward to meeting up but I’m going to have to wait until after Donegal play Tyrone in case I can be accused. Give that message to Mickey through the media, I’ll be contacting him after Donegal play Tyrone in the first round of the Championship
Qn: You’ll be robbing Jimmy (McGuinness, Donegal All-Ireland-winning manager) off Celtic?
Ans: I’ll certainly be having words with Jimmy. We’ve certainly become good friends over the last three years through my dad. My dad knows him extremely well. He comes up to the house and spends a lot of time with my dad and I’ve gotten to know him.
Qn: Are you still pinching yourself you have been appointed Ryder Cup captain?
Ans: I’m pinching myself. I’m on an absolute high, it means so much to me. To be received in this way by your peers – it’s not just one or two people, it seems to be everybody. That’s gratifying and humbling.
Qn: Will you put your own game to one side now?
Ans: Ah no. I’m still keen on playing. I think it’s important for the next two years I have a focus on my golf; I am out there competing and my game is in good enough shape that I can play in the top groups with some of the players and see them. I’m still really motivated about my golf. This is not just a case off me drawing a line through it and getting to other things.
Qn: Do you see a temptation to do that?
Ans: But I still enjoy the game. I practiced all through the winter period. I love the game, I love playing, I love competing. I love being at this Abu Dhabitournament. I’m disappointed the way I played today, I could’ve played better to be hones but that’s the way it goes.
I played really well the first seven months of last year and I was really up the money list. I only played 14 events the whole of last year. I finished 80th in the Money List after playing in those 14 events and I missed the last five cuts. I should’ve made Dubai last year so my game is still pretty good, even in my mid-forties. I nearly won Walesand in the BMW in Munichlast year. I think I was two shots away on each occasion so I want to remain competitive. Playing golf is something I enjoy doing.
Qn: One thing to look forward to is that you receive an invitation to contest the PGA Championship at Oak Hill?
Ans: It will be nice to go to Oak Hill but it was at Oakland Hills I played my best golf at the Ryder Cup in 2004. Padraig won there too. It’s been very good for the Irish. The girl asked me there one of my greatest memories in the Ryder Cup. To be honest, standing on the back of that 15th green after beating Tiger and Davis on Saturday evening and 10,000 Irish people singing ‘You’ll never beat the Irish’at Tiger. That was a pretty good memory.
Qn: What’s your upcoming programme?
Ans: We’ll see. I’ve a lot of golf to play between now and then. I’m going to play next week and in Dubai. I’m going to play India. I haven’t plotted my schedule for the year and fitted in my coporate days yet because I didn’t know if I was going down this route. Now it’s a question of working out my schedule with Emma and working out duties to my sponsors with my commitments to the Tour.
Till I sit down with Scott and the rest of the European Tour team when I get back from Dubai, I don’t know where I’m going to be. I’ve got a pretty good team around me. We’ll see how things happen.
