The bleak fortress of Edinburgh Castle cut a haunting figure, enshrouded in an impenetrable Scottish sea mist, as one of the year’s boldest golfing initiatives was announced.
But, despite the ‘pea-souper’ settling on the battlements, reducing visibility to a few yards, there was no gloom and doom and certainly no lack of vision in the air as Team Scottish Hydro was announced to an attentive media.
In a nutshell, five young Scottish professionals on the European Challenge Tour will benefit, financially and strategically, from a pioneering new support programme under the auspices of Scottish Hydro.And as the 2011 Challenge Tour prepares to roust itself from a mid-winter hibernation by resuming in the South American continent in Colombia, one of Scotland’s most successful graduates from the Challenge Tour offered some valuable words of advice.
Stephen Gallacher emerged from a particularly potent group of graduates in 1998 and has never looked back, illness excepted in 2009.But as Gavin Dear, Chris Doak, Craig Lee, Callum Macaulay and Jamie McLeary dust down the sweaters and waterproofs, Gallacher offered the benefit of his accumulated wisdom from his full season off the regular European Tour on losing his card in 1997.
“If there is one thing I am telling the lads, it is to get the winning mentality” said the 36 year old from Bathgate, who was at the Castle with fellow Scots Paul Lawrie and Andrew Coltart to lend support to the five members of Team Scottish Hydro.
He recalled: “There is nowhere quite as gruelling as the Challenge Tour to toughen up young players, especially the ones who have just come out of the amateur ranks.“I’ve already spoken to Gavin, Chris, Craig, Callum and Jamie and my advice for them all is to think about winning rather than just trying to accumulate money to make that step onto the main Tour. Much as the Challenge Tour is a wonderful place to learn, it’s the one Tour you want to escape from as quickly as possible.
“All five of the Scots lads should be thinking of winning – three wins in a season gets you straight onto The European Tour, so that should be the priority. It’s the right mentality to have and it was certainly one that my colleagues on the Challenge Tour had in 1998.
“Incredibly, of the 15 players who qualified that season, nine of us have subsequently won titles on The European Tour or US PGA Tour and Søren Hansen has gone on to play in The Ryder Cup. I don’t think it’s any coincidence of that nine, seven of us managed to win on the Challenge Tour on our way to graduating.”
Gallacher’s memory wasn’t playing tricks on him, either. Australian John Senden was the one member of that class who won in America, while Warren Bennett, Massimo Scarpa, Ricardo Gonzalez, John Bickerton, Hansen, Jorge Berendt, Chris Hanell and Gallacher himself all collected titles on The European Tour.
Gallacher, who along with a large group of fellow Tour professionals has promised to lend his support to the project going forward, added: “Although the Team Scottish Hydro lads have a great support mechanism behind them, they can’t afford to get complacent. I hope they are never satisfied with 10th place. I hope they are hungry and go for it. This initiative has given them a great opportunity and it’s up to them to grab it with both hands.”
