Graeme McDowell heads to Houston ‘moving in the right direction’

Graeme McDowell has recalibrated, and is all set to get the engine running again. With next week's US Masters fast approaching on the horizon, the Northern Irishman is aiming to kick-start a fast finish to the season at the Houston Open at Memorial Park – the first of five tournaments in a six-week stretch – where world number one Dustin Johnson returns to competitive action after contracting Covid-19.

It is almost two decades since McDowell made his debut in the Houston Open (a bonus for his winning the South of Ireland amateur, at the time both events were sponsored by Shell) and, if there was some youthful innocence back then, the 41-year-old seasoned professional is hopeful that he can regain the form of earlier in the year, when he won the Saudi International on the European Tour.

“It’s been a frustrating summer as I felt I had some nice momentum going into the break [due to the Covid-19 pandemic] and, when I came out of [it], I felt great as I had done a lot of work physically, I had lost a little bit of weight and I was feeling good but I just couldn’t do a good job switching back into golf. I struggled with my game, struggled with the atmosphere. I got off to a slow start with Kenny [Comboy, caddy] testing positive as I was planning to play the first couple of weeks and just keep going and play my way into form.”

Unfortunately for McDowell and his bagman, the intent hit a speedbump and, in fact, he missed six straight cuts before finding some form at the BMW PGA in Wentworth (tied-24th) in his last outing, Since then he has spent the past three weeks at home in Orlando sharpening his game.

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“I have been a little less range-centric and a little more golf course-centric which is something I am trying to work on at the minute and that is to play more golf and spending less time on the range looking for something.

"Coming into this week, I am looking forward to playing on a new golf course. It's long, very long. Brooks Koepka had an input into it and it is amazing how players build golf courses to the style of play they like to play. Four of the fairways are about 260-yards to the fairway so it is a long course off the tee and the greens are very complex as they are very undulating," said McDowell.

“I am coming into this week feeling like my game is moving in the right direction and, of course, it would be nice getting a good head of steam up going into [Augusta].”

For Johnson, returning after suffering from the coronavirus, “it is about just getting some reps and playing and practicing for next week. I’ve had way more time off that I wanted coming into Augusta, I definitely didn’t plan on having this much time off,” said Johnson.