Go west, middle-aged man

Colin Montgomerie will this week, starting on Thursday, try to win his first major championship. It will be his 37th attempt and rarely, if ever, can he have had such a devastatingly disappointing preparation.

In the final round of the British Masters at Woburn on Sunday he produced a display that was, by his standards, pathetic, and the result was the kind of defeat which was the very last thing he needed.

The world number four was the odds-on favourite with the sponsor Victor Chandler to take the title when, after three rounds, he was only two shots behind the eventual winner, Gary Orr.

But, far from making up the deficit, he finished three behind and was thoroughly dejected.

His final round of 71 contrasted strongly with his previous three of 64, 69 and 66, made worse by the fact that of the top-20 finishers only one man, Jarrod Moseley with a 73, had a worse score.

Montgomerie took away £50,000 sterling to Orr's £133,000 but that will be the least of his worries as he jets into Louisville, Kentucky to take on the Valhalla course and the USPGA championship field.

His declared intention at the start of last week's event was to play well, experience competitive pressure and build some confidence. He achieved the first two for the first three rounds and then dissipated the whole lot with his final round, of which his abiding memory will be how he failed utterly to reach his own high standards.

All of which brings into question how best to prepare for a major, and in particular how best for a European to prepare for the three in America.

On Saturday evening Montgomerie admitted that even by Thursday jet-lag is still a factor when he was told that his tee-time for the first round was not until 1.40 p.m. If that is the case then it surely means that the only way to prepare properly is to go at least a week early and, if you feel the need, to compete in the US tour event the week before.

It would mean missing a European Tour event and so make winning the order of merit that little bit harder, but as Montgomerie has won the last seven and claims that he is not desperate to win another, that should not matter.

It has been said countless times that Montgomerie is too good a golfer not to win a major championship or three before he is finished. But at the age of 37 time is a factor - the oldest major winner was Julius Boros at the US PGA in 1968 aged 48 - and his recent finishes in the US events do not encourage the belief that he is getting any closer.

He has had two top-10 finishes in his last eight American attempts, and this year finished 19th in the Masters and tied for 46th in the US Open.

Before the Ryder Cup last year Nick Faldo had a go at Montgomerie, effectively accusing him of playing in a comfort zone. The coded message was that Montgomerie should play the US tour if he really wanted to win majors.

It was an ill-judged attack given that the Scot has a young family that he is not prepared to leave. But it seems common sense to prepare in the most effective way for something you desire more than anything in your sport, and that way should mean playing in America the week before a major.

Go west, middle-aged man.