Seeing your name on every sign and sticker wherever you look is a little disconcerting, but Paul Lawrie feels no pressure at all in the tournament bearing his name this week.
The former Open champion breezed to an opening victory in perfect conditions at Archerfield in the Aberdeen Asset Management Paul Lawrie Matchplay, enthusing about feeling as fit as he’s done all season.
Lucas Bjerregaard is almost half Lawrie’s 47 years yet the Dane – seeded 20th – was well beaten 4 and 2 by his host.
“Lucas is a super lad, obviously much younger and stronger than I am but I was hitting up with him and sometimes past him today,” said Lawrie, who has been battling a neck problem and had taken two weeks off after the Open.
However he opened yesterday with a wedge to three feet for birdie and then picked up another at the second.
“Once you have a start like that you feel confident and I didn’t feel restricted at all,” he continued. “The neck was troubling me in the pro-am yesterday but it was great today and I’m not quite sure why – you see an awful lot of physios at my age.”
When swinging freely and at speed, however, Lawrie feels he can compete with anyone.
“When you’re just poking it down the fairway because you can’t swing full out, you just can’t make birdies and I made six today,” he added.
“Lucas didn’t play as well as he could, but that’s how matchplay is sometimes.”
Even though his name is everywhere to be seen this week, Lawrie feels no pressure as host other than the personal pressure to play the way he feels he can.
“Everything’s handled by (management company) 4Sports and my role other than playing was just the pro-am and dinner yesterday, and a few question and answer sessions with sponsors,” he said. “I did all this last year and I know what to expect, so it’s not a problem.
“We’re into our second year and I think we all learned a lot from last year we’re putting into practice this year. I think it already feels like a bigger event and a better atmosphere and there’s a good amount of people out there, which is encouraging.”
Lawrie was joined in the second round by compatriots Marc Warren – a semi-finalist in last year’s event – Richie Ramsay and Craig Lee.
Warren had seven birdies in beating Jorge Campillo 3 and 2, a marked improvement from his tally during the peak season period at the beginning of the last month when results weren;t exactly what he had been looking for.
“Wedges and short irons have been letting me down,” he said. “I drove the ball really well at the Scottish and the Open but wasn’t making birdies to convert it into a score.
“It’s the most birdies I’ve made all season, which is pleasing given the work I’ve been doing these last few weeks.”
Ramsay always had a lead on David Howell but needed a 20 foot birdie putt on the last to close out the match one-up, having been three up close to the turn.
“That’s a dangerous player and a pretty deadly putter when he gets going,” he pointed out. “But there’s plenty of them, out of 64 guys we’ve got 41 Tour winners here this week, there’s going to be no easy games.”
Lee’s last matchplay competition was also at Archerfield but way back in 2005, in the Tartan Tour version, but he eased himself back into the format with five birdies in his 3 and 2 victory over France’s experienced Raphael Jacquelin.
It wasn’t a happy return to action for Stephen Gallacher, but perhaps to be expected after the Ryder Cup player has altered his swing to prevent a recurring wrist problem.
His biggest problem however was to run into a whirlwind opponent in Italy’s Renato Paratore, who had six birdies on his way to a crushing win.
Scott Jamieson was well beaten by Scottish Open champion Alex Noren, while David Drysdale went down to former Dunhill Links champion Michael Hoey 4 and 3.
