Two Ulstermen begin today's Italian Open at Castelconturbia, near Milan, with different aspirations. While Darren Clarke knows his steady rise is likely to continue, Ronan Rafferty, once the best in Europe, returns from injury and just hopes he can survive 36 holes.
Clarke comes back to Europe after his splendid debut in the US Masters at Augusta where he ended with a share of eighth place. And a good week in Italy will take Clarke past out-of-form Nick Faldo on the world rankings.
Currently lying 30th in the world, Clarke would ease past 29thplaced Faldo with the right result.
To break into the world's top 20 is an ambition and to that end, his manager Andrew Chandler has been working furiously with American commissioner Tim Finchem to try to get his man into more US Tour events so that he can pick and choose from two tour cards next year when the World Championships begin.
There is already $100,000 in the US Tour kitty towards next year's card, but he will probably need at least another $140,000 to make the US card.
He will play Westchester before the US Open, the Western Open and the US PGA Championship. But Clarke may well have to miss the Smurfit European Open in favour of the Sprint International a week later, in an attempt to make enough money in America.
His American sojourn is on hold this week, however. He was third in this event at Garda golf last year and his keenness to win the £83,330 first prize in the face of opposition from such as Lee Westwood, Jose Maria Olazabal, Costantino Rocca and last week's winner of the Spanish Open, Thomas Bjorn, was evident in his attention to detail over a new set of clubs he has had made up for him.
"My new clubs are custom made because I stood over the guy making them for four and a half hours one day as Don White of MacGregor got the specifications right," said Clarke. "They're absolutely personal to me."
While Clarke was getting his new clubs in shape, Rafferty was just trying to get himself in shape. Since suffering torn ligaments and tendons in his left thumb during the Heineken Classic in Perth over three months ago - it was only the second event of the year - the 1989 European number one has been out of golf.
This week he takes tentative steps back. "I'm just hoping I can last 36 holes," said Rafferty. "I've not been able to play at all and only had my second round since the injury on Monday.
"It's been a very worrying time. I suppose it could have come at a worse part of the season, like June, but there's never a good time.
"It would have been far better if the thumb had broken instead of doing all the ligament and tendon damage. Then you know it's a plaster-cast and six weeks off.
"Now I don't know what to expect. I've only chanced hitting 20 balls on the first day here, 30 or 40 the next to build up. I'm only playing this week to see how things go. If I can survive the 36 holes then it will be a major step forward."
There are eight other Irishmen in the field. Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley hope to end their mini-run of two missed cuts. Eamonn Darcy, Christy O'Connor junior, Des Smyth, Philip Walton, Raymond Burns and Francis Howley are also in the line-up.
