Former Open Champion Paul Lawrie knows he may have to lift this week’s Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open or the Claret Jug again next week to have any chance of making the Ryder Cup team, but would be willing to do anything to help European Captain Paul McGinley.
Lawrie is currently 80th in The Race to Dubai after an injury-hit season and being named one of McGinley's vice-captains in September looks his most realistic chance of being involved at Gleneagles.
"There's been no chat from Paul to myself about vice-captain," Lawrie said ahead of the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open. "He's made it very clear that he would like me to play on the team, as I'm sure he says to everyone.
"And then if I don't get on the team, then we'll wait and see if he makes the call and asks me to do it. But if I don't make the team, whatever job he wants me to do is not a problem. I think every member of the tour would support that.
"It'll take a hell of an effort now to get in. It'll take a hell of an effort even to impress Paul enough for a pick with where I am. I would need to win this week or next week, I feel, to give him enough of a headache to think am I worth the third pick.
"I'm not saying it can't happen. If you're the winner next week, it would be tough for them to leave you out, so I'll be going all out still. I'm not giving up on it but my window is closing."
Lawrie can at least rely on home advantage this week, with the Scottish Open being staged at Royal Aberdeen for the first time and attracting a stellar field featuring the likes of defending and Open champion Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Justin Rose and Luke Donald.
And the 45-year-old believes having the crowd on his side could prove to be a help rather than a hindrance.
"I was registering this morning and it's the first time I ever put "home" under my hotel details, so that was quite nice," the 1999 Open champion added. "We live about 25 minutes from here.
"Some of my biggest wins have come in Scotland when people were expecting me to kind of get out there and make a performance. I think it almost makes it a little easier. You know you're the one in the group that people are walking around to watch more than the other two, and you feed off that."
