It’s back to work under heat of the Russian sun
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After all the drama of the Open Champion-ship, it is back down to the rigours of everyday life on the European Tour for the majority of players.
While it was painful to miss out on Royal Birkdale, especially after going so close to qualifying at Loch Lomond the previous week, I still enjoyed watching the event unfurl as a spectator.
It was a sensational performance from Padraig Harrington, his back nine was incredible in those conditions and it was great to see another European victory.
It was frustrating not be there, so I am pleased to get back playing again this week, even if it is in a rather far-flung destination.
This week the tour is in Russia, somewhere I have not played since a Challenge Tour event in 1998.
I have heard a lot of good things about it and with the weather forecasters predicting temperatures of up to 30C, I’ve packed the sun cream. The course is about one hour’s drive away from Moscow so this will be your classic airport-hotel-course-hotel-airport job.
There will not be much time for sightseeing, but given what I have been told about the cost of a beer in Moscow, perhaps that is not a bad thing.
I will just be concentrating on picking up where I left off at Loch Lomond a fortnight ago.
I may have narrowly missed out on the Open, but I gave it my best shot and it was a good week.
If I did not play in Russia I would have faced a month without competitive golf, which is not the best scenario.
The last week or so I have played a lot in practice to try to keep the momentum.
My last couple of tournaments, Loch Lomond in particular, were great for the confidence and also helped me secure my playing rights for next season. Keeping my card was never really a worry for me, but it is always there at the back of your mind.
To get it in the bag is a psychological boost and I can go out and be aggressive in my last 10 tournaments of the season.
It was that approach which paid off for me in the Scottish Open.
I just decided to go for the flags more and it paid off. Sure, I might need to make some chips now and again, but I think the more aggressive you are, the higher the rewards.
I am not a big target-setter so not too much will change for the rest of the season.
I still want to finish as high up as I can every week and, of course, I want to be involved in the end-of-season Masters at Valderrama.
I will need to finish in the top 60 to get there so although my card is in the bag, there remains plenty to play for.
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