Paul Lawrie and Thomas Bjorn have become Captain Darren’s secret service – only those being spied on would have to be “pretty daft” if they didn’t realise it.
Vice-captains Lawrie and Bjorn have already been detailed to play every week with Ryder Cup team candidates by skipper Darren Clarke ahead of Hazeltine, the first element of their duties to help Team Europe ahead of the defence of the trophy.
“Thomas and I have been playing with certain players for quite a few weeks, if they don’t know why then they’re pretty daft, and none of them are,” said Lawrie, helping launch a new sponsorship of the Scottish PGA Championship.
“Obviously we report back to Darren what we think, what we’ve seen and how they are playing and feeling and I have memories of it myself.
“When I was in line to get in the team in 2012 I played with Jose Maria Olazabal four or five times at events leading up to it – and, unbelievably, played terribly every time!”
Today’s candidates seem to have no such nerves, he added.
“Last week in Germany I played with Joost Luiten and Bernd Wiesberger and both played very well – one was seven-under and one was eight-under – so the report went back very positively.
“It’s just a shame my golf hasn’t been the best and I think Darren’s feeling the same way, that his golf isn’t at the level he’d like because he’s got so much else going on.”
No other specific duties have been given to the vice-captains as yet – Iain Poulter and Padraig Harrington have also been recruited, and a fifth backroom man will be named after the Open.
That might seem like overkill, but Paul McGinley’s template at Gleneagles, when he successfully used Des Smyth in the “fifth man” role, is being followed again.
“The locker room guy is a big one,” said Lawrie. “My only issue at Medinah was that the communication sometimes wasn’t that good among everyone but this has sorted all that out.
“McGinley got that right at Gleneagles by having someone in the locker room. It’s a brilliant idea because while the guys out there playing are the most important thing there’s still four guys that are not playing who need to know what’s going on, and what the feeling is before the next pairings are announced.
“Even for guys coming off the course, it’s good to have someone waiting to greet them.”
For himself, Lawrie is not playing this week in France because a recurring foot problem needs to be rested ahead of a four-week run which includes the Scottish Open, Open and his own matchplay event.
“My left foot has not been good for a while and it’s getting slightly worse, so I’m going to go in for an operation on it at the end of the year,” he continued.
“It has been bugging me over the last three or four years and slowly getting worse to the point where I need to do something about it. It’s a bone spur which has caused a cyst which flares up, sometimes eight to nine times a day.
“I’ve manned up pretty well, to be fair, but after four years it’s time to get something done about it.
“If I don’t get in the Final Series of events I can get it done straight after Portugal in October, so by Christmas I’ll be fine and ready to go again at the Desert Series in January.”
Lawrie meanwhile has sympathy for the top players withdrawing from the Olympics because of fears of the Zika virus.
“You can see in all the statements I’ve read from the guys who’ve pulled out – Rory, Shane, Jason Day – you can see they want to play. There’s no question that they want to be part of it,” said Paul.
“Shane is so proud of his roots and where he’s from so for him to pull out of representing Ireland he must be seriously concerned.
“I think it’s because of where the golf course has been built, on a swamp where there’s more chance of a mosquito problem there. That could be why there are more golfers pulling out than in other sports.
“To have the chance of an Olympic gold medal would be fantastic, but it will never match up to the four Majors. They are the pinnacle of our sport I don’t think anyone will ever convince me or anyone else otherwise.
“Would you rather have an Olympic gold medal or a Claret Jug? I know what I’d rather have because the history and prestige of The Open, US Open, PGA and the Masters is way above what an Olympic medal would ever mean to a golfer.”
