Ask Paul Casey to show you the photograph on the bottom of his mobile phone cover. It’s a proud picture of his son, Lex Luthor who was born on 1st September, 2014 and a few weeks before Casey, as a full European Tour member, captured the KLM Open.
Lex, and named after Superman’s fictional villain, is clearly Casey’s reason in not wishing to take-up European Tour membership and thus ruling himself out in qualifying for the 2016 European Ryder Cup team.
However to many, including the European Tour, it would seem Casey is the villain.
Casey has discussed his decision not to take-up 2016 European Tour membership with European Team Captain Darren Clarke, and he also with new European Tour CEO, Keith Pelley.
But while he’s earned the respect of Clarke it would seem in speaking with Casey the jury is still out with regards to Pelley.
Paul Casey holds out a picture of his son Lex. (Photo – www.golfbytourmiss.com)
“I am still very much at ease with my decision not to join the European Tour this year as it’s all about the little guy, and here’s his picture,” said Casey pulling his mobile phone from his pocket.
“He’s now 18 months ago and it’s very much a relief and a burden off my mind that I made that decision and I am sticking with it.
“It wouldn’t be fair on Lex or Polly (Pollyana his wife) as she is still working. She was in London the Sunday before the Honda Classic and I was in L.A. so it’s difficult and for easy of planning, for ease of my mind, without a doubt it’s the best decision.
“But then there are guys out here who should know golf well and who are not sure because I stayed with Seth Waugh last week and he asked me:- ‘Like where are you in the Ryder Cup rankings?’ I said to him ‘I thought you knew golf. I’m not in it’.
“That’s the only thing that is frustrating as I would love to play under Darren Clarke’s leadership as I think he will be an amazing captain.
“The good thing in chatting with Darren is that he respects my decision and I respect him for that. He sent me a text saying: ‘Of course, I’m disappointed but I totally respect your decision.
“My only disappointment is that Keith Pelley keeps saying ‘We have done everything to help Paul and he still hasn’t rejoined the European Tour and he hasn’t rejoined’. All Keith did was help the guys outside the top-50 on the World Rankings, and I respect that.”
Casey, a veteran of three Ryder Cups in 2004, 2006 and 2008, caught up with Pelley during the staging of last year’s WGC – HSBC Champions event and where the now 38-year old Englishman underlined to Pelley – ‘Family comes first!
Casey and his family reside in Paradise Valley in Arizona, and with Casey a U.S. green card holder, so the U.S. is his home and has long been his place of residence.
“I have no interest is getting on a plane to play both tour’s and then the only event I can see myself playing in Europe this year is The Open,” he said.
“So it’s been great that most respect the decision I have made and while there’s others who seem to disagree, those who have families have been full supportive of my decision.
“Of course, there was that initial reaction after I made my decision but then when I got myself back inside the top-50 there was like this assumption that I was again going to play both tours.
“But then playing both tours was a contributing factor to dropping outside the top-50, anyway.
“You only have to listen to G Mac as he cited balancing a new family as a contributing factor to a downturn in his game and for not playing the golf he knew he was capable of.”
Paul Casey proudly carrying a photo of his son Lex on his mobile phone. (Photo – www.golfbytourmiss.com)
And in bringing up the subject of World Rankings it is timely to highlight Casey’s plight in getting himself back inside the elite top-50.
At the start of the 2015 season Casey was ranked 77nd on the World Rankings but a year on he teed-up in his first event of 2016, the Farmer’s Insurance Open ranked 26th in the world.
Casey had moved back inside the top-50 and to 45th in the world with his ninth place result in the Honda Classic. It was the first time he moved among golf’s elite since dropping to 54th when he withdrew with injury from the 2012 Players Championship.
“I just lost confidence in my game and sometimes there is not much you can do when you do happen to drop outside the top-50,” he said.
“It can be often just a distraction that causes the slide and that’s the nature of golf but when you have multiple distractions it is damn near impossible, at this level, to maintain that top-50 ranking. So getting back inside the top-50 is great, and it seems you will never get there.
“You never think about it when you’re young as it’s this exciting club up the World Rankings but when you have tasted it, as I have a couple of times now, it’s difficult. The way I have always managed to get myself but up there is going back to the simple stuff. Going back to the basics and working on what got up there in the first place.
“I know Padraig (Harrington) is always on a quest to find perfection but for me it just doing what I do really, really well.
“And in a weird way it’s been an extremely satisfying process, so I’ve enjoyed getting back inside the top-50 even though I was also disappointed not have won last year.
“So when I sat back at the end of last year to savour a glass, or maybe three glasses of wine I was proud of myself, and I thought ‘that’s pretty damn good’.
“Of course, there is a few guys who have dropped out but never got themselves back in.
“It’s just that I like to work, and it’s not easy but I really like the challenge and it’s the reason to get up in the morning even though I might feel awful but then it is hard work because it’s not linear as it’s like a step forward but then two steps back.
“(Peter) Kostis gives you something to work on and you think yor are doing great but the next thing you are shanking it or topping it, and he’s saying ‘no, no it will help you’ but then I’m saying to him I can’t see it helping me, so that makes even more hard and horrible.”
