Just as I was wondering what to write about this week, someone asked me: What is your connection to madillgolf.com? Wow! How to answer that? Without resorting to the words that I’m trying to eliminate from my vocabulary?
My eventual reply was, I thought, succinct, measured and polite: Maureen’s big sister and co-founder of the blog, Madill being our maiden name. After all, why on earth would the questioner have bothered looking at the blog in the first place and discovered the connection? Far too simple.
Now that the over-70s automatically regard me as one of their own the time for delusions/illusions is long gone and I leave the big questions to others: Why am I here? What’s it all for? Who knows? As my aunt used to say: Just get on with it, dear.
So, that still begs the question: What am I going to write about!

Paul Lawrie all wrapped up as he wraps up his distinguished career at home in Scotland [Getty Images]
“It’s not a bad innings considering I turned pro [in 1986] with a 5 handicap and didn’t think I’d play any European Tour events. I haven’t been a great player but I’ve been decent and that’s all you can ask for.”
Lawrie’s first win was the Catalan Open of 1996 and he went on to win six other tournaments plus the big one, his major championship at Carnoustie. He played in the 1999 Ryder Cup at Brookline and he and Colin Montgomerie played together in the foursomes and fourballs, winning two matches, halving one and losing one. In all the mayhem of the final day singles, playing in the anchor match, Lawrie kept his head and his nerve and beat Jeff Maggert by 4 and 3. It was an impressive effort, overshadowed by all the whooping and the hollering of the American comeback from 10-6 down.He won the Dunhill Links Championship in 2001 and the Celtic Manor Resort Wales Open in 2002 but didn’t win again until 2011. In 2012 he won twice and skipped the US Open, even though he was exempt, to concentrate on securing his Ryder Cup place at Medinah. “The US Open was never an event I did well in,” Lawrie said. “It wasn’t my type of golf. I’ve never been the straightest off the tee or the strongest getting balls out of the rough……There was no point in me going there and with travelling I thought that was basically three tournaments I was taking out of my schedule….I got a lot of stick for the decision…..but I stuck to my guns, decided it was the best thing for me and it worked out perfectly because I got to Medinah.”
This time it was the Europeans who resurrected themselves on the last day and Lawrie, who’d lost his two fourball matches, defeated Brandt Snedeker 5 and 3 in the singles, one of the highlights of his career.

Jose Maria Olazabal (centre) with the European team that produced the miracle at Medinah. Paul Lawrie is second from the left in the back row, between Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood [Getty Images]
Proud as he is of his success on the course, Lawrie, an Aberdonian born and bred, is even happier with the work he and his wife Marian have done off the course. “She’s been with me every step of the way and as soon as we got to a level where we thought we could give back we did because it was always something we wanted to do and we really enjoy it. Things have just snowballed since.”
There’s the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre, the Paul Lawrie Foundation, the Five Star sports agency and the Tartan Pro Tour – Neil Fenwick, who won that tour’s order of merit recently, is playing at the Renaissance Club in his first European Tour start and Lawrie couldn’t be more chuffed: “To see Neil playing this week is huge for us. That was what the Tartan Pro Tour was designed for, to give guys like him the opportunity to step up.”
Lawrie won’t be abandoning the practice ground altogether, however, because he’s an ambassador for the Legends Tour and will be putting in some work over the winter. “I’ve definitely got ambitions,” he said. “I’m not saying I’m going to beat them all, all of the time but I feel as if I can win a few and do well. It’s got some huge potential, so I’m going to put all of my attention into that and what I do outside of the game.”
A decent man who’s had a more than decent career.

Paul Lawrie’s moving on and so is WHGC. “No diggers,” Mo said, so here’s one of the removals vans being loaded up for the short flit to our new clubhouse……