logo
Lee Westwood: European tour banned me then asked me to promote Ryder Cup

Lee Westwood: European tour banned me then asked me to promote Ryder Cup

Telegrapha day ago
Lee Westwood's first visit to Royal Portrush was in 1993 when he was one of the favourites to win the Amateur Championship. His mother, Trish, stepped in as caddie.
'It peed down and she didn't keep the clubs dry,' Westwood recalls. 'I didn't qualify for the matchplay stages and I told Mum it was her fault. She told me that she had managed to keep my nappies dry for all those years. There is no arguing with that.'
Two years later, Westwood played in his first Open Championship and on the 30th anniversary of his debut the memories are coming back to the 52-year-old. 'It was at St Andrews, the Home of Golf, so it was intimidating enough waiting to get on that first tee in front of the Royal and Ancient clubhouse and everything.
'We were in the group behind Arnold Palmer and he was playing with Ian Baker-Finch [the 1991 champion]. Well, Baker-Finch hit that hook that has become infamous. It's the widest fairway in golf and he hits 180 yards left over the first fairway, over the 18th fairway and out of bounds, where no pro had ever been before or since.
'There were a few gasps, then dead silence. It was eerie and I'm stood there saying to my caddie, 'for f--- sake, he won this a few years ago and if the pressure gets to him...''
Westwood 'bunted' his down the fairway, made his par and 'managed to suppress the vomit'.
'It was great after that. The Old Course invariably gets clogged up so every tee I'd be able to have a chat with Arnie. It was his last ever Open, so we had the best view of him waving goodbye on the Swilcan Bridge on the Friday.
'It was emotional, because I mean, what a guy. I can't remember what we talked about, but I do remember two years later when I should have won his tournament at Bay Hill [the PGA Invitational on the PGA Tour].
'I think I finished double-bogey, bogey, double-bogey and, as tradition dictates in that event, I went over and shook Arnie's hand at the back of the green. Ernie [Els] ended up winning and afterwards I was with Ernie in the bar and Arnie walked in and joined is. After a few vodkas he clocks it was me and said: 'It's you – you finished terribly. But then you walked up the hill, smiling and shook my hand. If that was me, I'd have been chewing the f------ grass.' Quality.'
Westwood in this mood is one of the best listens in the game and no doubt when he meets up his old friends at the Dunluce Links this week, the yarns will burst forth. Yet Westwood insists he will not be at Portrush simply to catch up with pals, or, as he puts it, 'to have one last whirl at the Open' after missing it for the last three years.
'That's definitely not why I entered qualifying for the first time since '95. I did it because I played well at Portrush in 2019 [when he finished fourth] and I loved the course. I don't look back, never have, and with myself anyway, don't get nostalgic.
'But I was proud of getting through at Dundonald. I'd flown there straight from the LIV event in Dallas, got there at 8pm, walked the course as I'd never seen it, had an hour's sleep, because of jetlag, then got up and played 36 holes and was the medallist.
'Helen [his wife, who caddied for him at the Ayrshire course] said I was talking some right rubbish. I was delirious, surviving on fumes. But it was worth it as I'm back at the tournament I always wanted to win above all others. The Open has always been the one. I loved the Masters, but playing in front of a home crowd at the Open... There is nothing like it. I came close in both.'
Indeed, Westwood had three top-three placings in 27 Opens and three top-threes in 21 Masters. He does not like to trawl through the near misses – 'it's boring', he says – but acknowledges that 'the one that got away was definitely in 2009', when he bogeyed the last to finish a single shot out of a play-off in which Stewart Cink beat Tom Watson.
'Yeah, I'm always told I should have won a major, but so what? 'Should have,' means nothing. I have no regrets, I've had a good career. Go to world No 1. Not many have done that or played in 11 Ryder Cups.
'The way I see it is that I had a slump in 2001 going into 2002 and I was there, as a 27-year-old sat on the edge of my hotel bed somewhere in the world after yet another missed cut, saying to myself 'I've had it, I'm going to quit'. It happened a few times. I didn't, though. I've always believed this game is character-forming and quitting wouldn't have helped form my character, would it?
'So I don't fret about majors. I'm not Doug Sanders. I only think about the close calls when it gets mentioned to me. I've got bigger things to concentrate on. Things that I can actually have some control on.'
Sanders, of course, famously said 20 years after missing a tiddler to win the Open: 'Do I always think about that putt? No. Sometimes it doesn't cross my mind for a full five minutes.'
British Open, 12 juillet 1970. Le flamboyant Doug Sanders, amateur de playmates, de vodka tonic et de tenues flashy, rate le putt de la victoire avant de s'incliner face à Jack Nicklaus : Plus tard, il confiera : « Parfois, il peut se passer trente minutes sans que j'y pense » pic.twitter.com/iBClmSn8KK
— Perdants magnifiques (@TousPoulidor) July 12, 2024
In terms of his career, Westwood denies that he has a plan to bring the curtain down anytime soon. 'Honestly, I don't. I haven't planned any further than August when the LIV season finishes.'
It is understood that his three-year contract with the breakaway league is up and that positive discussions are ongoing as to a renewal. However, there are options regardless.
'I can go back to the DP World Tour, you know. LIV would pay my fines, which are ridiculously about £900,000 and I still have several exemptions to play on that circuit. LIV would already have paid my fines if I'd asked, but I didn't do it out of principle. It's a daft amount anyway.'
Westwood is adamant he is not bitter about leaving the Tour on which he won the Order of Merit three times. 'I'm just worried for those who are still there and where the Tour is heading. They have basically been swallowed up by the PGA Tour and they were always our rivals.
'In Ponte Vedra, they don't care about the DP World Tour. Our Tour board has turned down a great deal from LIV and a lot of their players know. Lots of them ask me what they should do, but all they can do is ask questions at AGMs and maybe an EGM. Poults [Ian Poulter] and I tried to do that at Wentworth three years ago, but got talked to by the chief executive like schoolkids. He's gone, but nothing has changed. The Tour is very vulnerable.'
It is interesting to hear that Westwood could envisage a pathway back to the Tour. Yet as far as the Ryder Cup captaincy or even assistant captaincy, he believes it is a hopeless case. 'I would have loved to be Ryder Cup captain, but they have closed that possibility because of LIV. It's funny in a way as I've heard the names of guys who are being lined up and am aware that the only reason they didn't join LIV is because their numbers were not met and they wanted too much. How does that work?
'Another thing that makes me laugh is that the Tour's video team were at the LIV event in Valderrama and asked me to do a bit of a motivational bit to camera. I'm banned! And they want me to help them out! I took the moral high ground and did it. But I ask you...'
Westwood is mystified by much in the seemingly never-ending split. Currently he cannot imagine a peace deal being reached and smiles at the notion that the Saudi paymasters will walk away. 'HSBC has just done a deal with LIV and we [The Majesticks] are one of the teams the bank is backing. HSBC would not put in its money and reputation, if it even had the slightest fear of LIV shutting down. People need to wake up. And not just to this.'
Westwood is sure that 'two-tier' splicing is alive and well on the DP World Tour and dismisses the claims that it is merely following its own rulebook.
'They don't believe that, not really. Jon [Rahm] and Tyrrell [Hatton] have had the red carpet rolled out since they joined LIV, so they can appear in this year's Ryder Cup, but they banged the door shut on us lot. They painted us as the villains and yeah, I had a few comments chucked at me.
'It doesn't bother me, because it's only a few, and I'm sure the galleries at this Open will be great. They always are. It's what makes me excited about Portrush, although I will not be burdening myself with any expectations on how I perform. So long as I enjoy it. Work hard, try your best and move on. It's served me OK this far. Helen will be on the bag. My mum 32 years ago and now my wife. I hope it doesn't rain.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

The Open: Rory McIlroy's reported ‘first tee struggles' this week while Saturday action ‘tweaked' due to loyalist parade
The Open: Rory McIlroy's reported ‘first tee struggles' this week while Saturday action ‘tweaked' due to loyalist parade

Belfast Telegraph

time21 minutes ago

  • Belfast Telegraph

The Open: Rory McIlroy's reported ‘first tee struggles' this week while Saturday action ‘tweaked' due to loyalist parade

10 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Rory's first tee struggles? Emmmm, not to alarm anyone ahead of tomorrow but the reports of this quote aren't exactly what we want to hear. Remember, Rory teed off early on Monday and Tuesday and nobody saw him hitting those shots. He did, however, get it safely off the first tee today, hitting an iron down the right side, just short of the bunker. The context of all this, of course, is his tee-shot out of bounds left in the first round in 2019, which ultimately led to an opening quadruple bogey 8 and him missing the cut by a shot. Just pretend we didn't mention anything... Jamie Kennedy on Twitter / X Oh Faxon said on @GolfChannel's "Live From" that Rory hit it out-of-bounds on the first tee on Monday... and Tuesday this week."He hasn't hit that fairway in his first two practice rounds. He hit both tee shots out-of-bounds on Monday and Tuesday."(He famously… Jamie Kennedy (@jamierkennedy) July 16, 2025 External contentWhen displaying external content, data is transferred to third parties. 42 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Fan favourite: Bryson DeChambeau It's hard to really appreciate the absolute totality of Bryson DeChambeau's 180 degree turn of public perception. The one-time villain of tour golf, he has been roared around the course this week by an adoring fanbase, and he's been in his element, interacting with the supporters at every turn. He tees off tomorrow at 2.48pm with Robert MacIntyre and Justin Rose. If he could do it this week, perhaps only Rory would be a more popular winner. Things you didn't think you'd be saying... Golf Channel on Twitter / X Bryson DeChambeau bonus driver by popular request from the Royal Portrush fans. 🫡🎥 @TheOpen Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) July 16, 2025 45 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Padraig Harrington with the big line of the week Paul Kelly on Twitter / X We may have reached peak preview here - @kclairerogers @padraig_h on Open ice-creams #TheOpen "I will have to say, in my considered opinion, we do the best 99s here. I've tested a 99 at every Open venue, and these are definitely the biggest and the nicest so far. Paul Kelly (@KellyPrc) July 16, 2025 External contentWhen displaying external content, data is transferred to third parties. Today 04:26 PM Gareth Hanna Fancy some merch? You better be ready to queue. The snake to get into the shop is only getting longer - and you'd imagine it'll be at least this length constantly during the tournament days. Today 04:21 PM Will you sign my armband? Firstly, if you're out and about this week, say hello and thank you to the friendly marshals around the course who are helping keep you safe at The Open. They're doing a great job. People like Evangelina Hughes of Royal Portrush, for instance, who was delighted when she asked two-time Major champion Justin Thomas for a selfie on the 18th and not only did he agree but he signed her armband, too! Today 03:59 PM Gareth Hanna Almost an ace on Calamity Spieth hopped the rope from 8 to reach 16, where he hit two rather contrasting tee shots. The first one was one that will have looked familiar to many - weak, right and down the slope. The second, however, was absolutely perfect. And judging by the 'ooooh' from the fans at the green, was very close to going in. Today 03:42 PM Gareth Hanna The Open Camping Village For those looking for a bit of shelter at night, The Open Camping Village at Ulster University's Coleraine campus is one option. Tourism NI said around 4,800 guests will stay at the site this – the equivalent of an Open record 11,500 total bed nights. That surpasses the previous highest number of 10,000 at St Andrews in 2022. Around 3,500 free bed nights for under 25s have been booked, while adult camping is priced from £55 per person per night. Today 03:39 PM Adam McKendry Does he Hov a chance? Norway's Viktor Hovland has had his fair share of ups and downs over the last couple of years but has shown signs of a mini-resurgence over the last few months, rising to 12th in the Data Golf Rankings, and he has been lapping up the support of the fans around Royal Portrush today. The 27-year-old has finished in the top-15 in three of his four Open appearances - including a tied-fourth in 2022 - but missed the cut at Royal Troon last year. Today 03:35 PM Gareth Hanna Drive for show… Spieth's putting display is my 'low-key impressive' moment of the week. He hit three putt from around 40 feet and stopped them all within a foot or two of each other. Not as easy as it looks! Today 03:32 PM Gareth Hanna How do you solve a problem like the fifth? It will be interesting to see how many players take the driver at the picturesque fifth hole as it winds downhill towards the green. Spieth tried out both driver a three wood. The driver was A1 and the wood was also in good position, just taking the bunkers out of play a little further back. It seems like the more sensible play when it comes to tomorrow - especially after Rory's lost ball episode round the green yesterday. Today 02:53 PM What it's like to follow Rory McIlroy: 'Only for Tiger' On the eighth hole while following Rory McIlroy, I turned to the Sunday Independent 's Paul Kimmage, walking along beside me, and asked had he ever seen as big a crowd for a practice round ever before. "Only for Tiger," he replied. That is the magnitude of what is happening at Royal Portrush this week. For the last two days, McIlroy has snuck out before the gates opened and got the bulk of his preparation done with minimal fuss. Today, he embraced the fans and let them all enjoy him for nine holes, and boy they did. At points on the course they were three deep. When he and Christiaan Bezuidenhout came to the ninth hole, not only was that grandstand behind the green full but so was the neighbouring 11th's. Both sides of the fairway were rammed. At every part of the course, fans clamoured for selfies and autographs, eager to have a memento of their time watching the Grand Slam hero up close, ignoring McIlroy's pleas to wait until he was done with his nine holes - which was a completely fair request given the number of people wanting something signed. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and that is clear to see that Northern Ireland have missed the Masters champion and it's not much of a surprise to see him command most of the support. Can he carry that weight of expectation when the action gets under way for real tomorrow? We'll see. As for the golf? McIlroy birdied the second, fifth, seventh and eighth. Do that tomorrow and he'll be flying. Today 02:51 PM Gareth Hanna 'It's 275 - should carry it' If ever we needed a reminder that these guys are playing a different game. Into the breeze on 4, Spieth assesses the danger of the first bunker and how he can take it out of play. In the end he faded it off the bunker into absolutely perfect place. Good job too, because he wouldn't have carried it. Today 02:45 PM Gareth Hanna Friends of a star Emily Hannaway and Lawrence Dunn are from Atlanta, Georgia, and are here in memory of a golfer in their family - and also to see their friend from home, competitor Stewart Cink. The 2009 Open champion is set to begin his first round at 11.26am tomorrow alongside Matteo Manassero and Marc Leishman. Happy Harrington The 53-year-old insists he is not going to just make up the numbers at Royal Portrush after being handed the annual honorary first tee time at this year's Open Championship, traditionally given by the R&A to a noteworthy player but one that is not considered to actually be in contention. Padraig Harrington insists Open ceremonial tee will not dull his competitiveness Two-time Open champion Padraig Harrington appreciates the honour of being asked to get the tournament at Royal Portrush under way but insists the ceremonial duty will not dull his competitive edge. Today 02:37 PM Gareth Hanna Green testing Spieth is flopping plenty of shots round the green, although all these guys will realise today's flat calm conditions make these shots behave very different to tomorrow, when it gives a slightly more turbulent outlook Gareth Hanna The Dame! Dame Laura Davies is out on the course - and even had a grin for photographer John! What a legend of the game. She has four major titles to her name, and entered the World Golf Hall of Game in 2015. Today 02:22 PM Gareth Hanna Long-range Spieth selfie This is Spencer and Tim from Australia, who are on a European tour and have stopped off at the golf. They shouted over for a selfie and Jordan Spieth told them to point the camera! Nice one. Today 02:10 PM Gareth Hanna Marvellous marshals Anybody here this week will see plenty of volunteers clad in white, lining each hole and enforcing the rules in each grandstand. They comes from a range of clubs throughout Northern Ireland. Ballyclare, Belvoir Park, Royal Belfast, Lurgan, Royal Portrush (obviously) and lots more are represented with teams of folk to help keep things in order out on the course. Gareth Hanna Masters rival's tribute to 'the legend' of Rory McIlroy Justin Rose has been speaking to the press today and paid tribute to McIlroy, spoke about his own heartbreaking loss to Rory at the Masters, and about Royal Portrush On the 'legend' of Rory McIlroy "Rory is obviously a local hero around here, and rightly so, and he has been probably since he shot 61 here as a kid. The legend around him in these parts has been growing for a long, long time. Obviously he's going to be incredibly well supported this week. I feel like the pressure is off him almost from that point of view this time around as it was to 2019 maybe even, the fact he's got nothing really more to prove. "This would just be like cherries on top of everything. I feel like probably he's in a good mindset, I would imagine. Obviously I've had a bit of a come down off the back of the Masters. I feel like I'm coming back around to having more energy and focus again." On The Masters "I've kind of been here before watching the same story, obviously being in a playoff against Sergio (Garcia in 2019), so there was definitely a little bit of déjà-vu to that moment. "I felt like I played great on Sunday. I felt like I chased as hard as I could, left it all out there. So there was more pride in the performance. I felt like I could almost imagine what it would be like to have won the Masters. I kind of feel like I have been that close. "But when you see all the outpouring from Rory, you understand how big the moment is and you obviously wish that for yourself, obviously, but it wasn't lost on me what a huge achievement that was for the game of golf. I was able to still be happy for Rory in that moment, and it had been a long time coming for him. "What can I say? He hit two amazing shots in the play-off. I'd imagine he felt like he'd have given it away until that point. He probably felt like he shouldn't even be in a playoff from his point of view. So for him to steady himself and to put two great swings on it when it mattered most for him, obviously when you lose to that, you can kind of walk out with your head held high and give your competitor a lot of props for that type of situation." On Royal Portrush "I think it's got everything, to be honest with you. I think it's tough enough off the tee where you've got to really respect it. The bunkers aren't as penal as a lot of other links golf courses necessarily. Still probably can't get on the green, but you can maybe advance the ball a little bit further than some other bunkers. But still avoiding the bunkers at all costs really around a links golf course is number one. "The rough is thick, but there's going to be opportunity out of the rough too. You can maybe draw the odd good lie, so it's kind of got that variability. It gives you the opportunity to hit recovery shots as well, I think. "We're going to have different wind directions this week, out of the south definitely for the first day, maybe day and a half, then potentially a little bit of north coming in again. Today was out of the north. So my practice trip was valuable because it was more of a south wind, so hopefully get a little bit more of a feel of how tomorrow is going to play for us versus today. "That's another reason why I was not massively intent today on exactly how the course was playing because I'm not sure we're going to get that feel again."

Ex-Man Utd wonderkid and Premier League star suing doctor for £7m over ‘unnecessary' op he claims cost him his career
Ex-Man Utd wonderkid and Premier League star suing doctor for £7m over ‘unnecessary' op he claims cost him his career

The Sun

time22 minutes ago

  • The Sun

Ex-Man Utd wonderkid and Premier League star suing doctor for £7m over ‘unnecessary' op he claims cost him his career

A FORMER Manchester United wonderkid is suing a doctor for £7million over an "unnecessary" operation. Sylvan Ebanks-Blake went under the knife after breaking his leg in 2013. 2 2 The retired striker never fully recovered from the injury as he did not return to top-flight football after the surgery. The 39-year-old believes that his surgeon, Prof James Calder, performed an "unnecessary" and "destructive" operation on his ankle. As a result, Ebanks-Blake says that the procedure caused his top-flight career to end prematurely. His barrister Simeon Maskrey KC told Mrs Justice Lambert at London's High Court: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" It is also part of the footballer's case that he claims he was not asked for proper consent before the operation. However, Prof Calder's lawyers have argued that Ebanks-Blake overestimated his skills. They said he "had an overoptimistic view of his own powers of recovery". Barrister Martin Forde KC added: "Far from curtailing the claimant's career, the defendant will argue that his clinical skills prolonged the career of a professional footballer, who had suffered a very serious injury." Ebanks-Blake was a promising forward in his youth days as he represented England at the Under-21 level. He also played youth football for Manchester United before leaving the club in 2006 for Plymouth Argyle. Where are they now: The unusual careers of former footballers The striker spent two years there before joining Wolves and established himself at the club. He scored 62 goals in 193 appearances for the club, including ten in the Premier League. Ebanks-Blake helped the club reach the top-flight in 2009 and was part of the iconic strike partnership alongside Irishman Kevin Doyle. He spent five years at the Molineux before the broken fibula injury struck. Ebanks-Blake left the club at the end of that season and bounced around clubs until he retired in 2019 at Walsall Wood following another leg fracture.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store