Golf Focus on Paul McGinleyOnce the fall starts, it is hard to produce a parachute that effectively makes for a soft landing.
In the school of life, a slide usually leads to a hard landing - and it is only now that Paul McGinley, who despite his disappointing personal performances of last season still managed to become a Ryder Cup hero, feels ready to begin the climb back up the rankings.
A year ago, McGinley was ranked 29th in the world. Now, he is down at number 99 and, consequently, has no invite to the US Masters or The Players' championship.
Last year, in his debut at Augusta, he finished 18th and a measly shot better would have given him a top-16 place and an invitation back.
"At the time, it wasn't a big deal because I thought I would still be in the top 50 in the world," he remarked yesterday.
Yet, typical of the player, there is no room for self pity. Instead, McGinley, who has restructured his swing over the winter under the watchful eye of coach Bob Torrance, aims to make the most of his lot, starting with this week's Dubai Desert Classic. While others dilly-dallied over whether to play in the tournament, McGinley went a step further and brought his family out for a week's holiday.
"We'd a great time," he remarked.
The fact his eldest daughter Niamh was due back in school yesterday means the family have returned home, and left McGinley to concentrate on getting back up those rankings.
Indeed, the Dubliner has also committed to playing in next week's Qatar Masters - although a number of players, including Adam Scott and Darren Clarke have pulled out - as he makes do with a limited spring schedule.
"If the war kicked off, it would be a different issue. Then again, if there was a war, the decision would be taken for us," he remarked. "To be honest, I've a lull in my schedule coming up and I am quite keen to get another tournament under my belt before the meat of the season starts."
What went wrong with McGinley's swing last season stretches back to a time not long after he won the Irish PGA in Westport.
"I just went down the path too far in what I was working on, and ended up using my hands and arms too much. Because it was in the middle of a big season in terms of competition, it was difficult to address it in mid-season. I went too far down the line in my technique but now I have just come back up the road.
"I had too much shape in my shots, and I've been working on taking that out. There was not a lot of damage done when you look at the success I had in the Ryder Cup. It will probably be the most memorable year in my career when I have finished," he said.
The fall down the rankings means he will probably have a five-week enforced break once Qatar finishes and before he plays in the Canaries Open. It's a far cry from last year, when he prepared for the Masters with a string of tournaments in the US. Does he deserve to be where he is in the rankings?
"I do deserve to be there, because I had a poor season relatively speaking week-in and week-out apart from the Ryder Cup. When you are playing badly, it is easy to fall down. Play well and you climb up.
"Rankings are volatile, which is a bad thing if you are not playing well but it is a good thing if you're playing well. The ball is in my court and there is no point in complaining.
"I want to focus on Europe and get my ranking back up. Last year was a big learning curve. I played a lot in America early last season and, without that experience, I wouldn't have had as successful a Ryder Cup as I did. There's no question that stood to me in the end, but at a cost of losing world ranking points. But I knew at the start of the year that's the way it would be and I have to get on with it.
"I'll have five weeks off and I will keep practising and working on my game for the large part of the season which starts with the B&H in The Belfry."
It'll be a return to a place that will forever have fond memories for McGinley. It's all of two months away, yet. Before then, though, the plan is to make sure that his trip to the Gulf kick-starts his rise back up the world rankings.
