McGinley responds happily to invitation

Sometimes, a bolt from the blue can provide something good. Yesterday, on the 16th hole at Valderrama, Paul McGinley - a player who has endured a frightful old time on tour this season, without a top-10 finish thus far and plummeting from 74th back in January to 209th in the world rankings - finally found some cheer, holing out with a nine-iron for an eagle that turned a mediocre round into a good one.

In signing for a 69, two under par, McGinley, a winner here in 2005 and invited to play this year only because of that stellar performance, finally rediscovered a pep in his step. It was overdue.

Although any money McGinley wins won't count to the Order of Merit - a stipulation imposed only on those four players who accepted invitations as past champions and had not qualified by right from the money list - it will count toward the European Ryder Cup qualifying and for world ranking points. For the Dubliner, that's sufficient incentive.

Up to now, in a barren year, he has had little to cheer. On the golf course, his best moments came at Carnoustie, where he went into the final round of the British Open in tied-third - the same position as Pádraig Harrington - only to fall away and eventually finish in tied-19th. Off the course, much fuss was made of his decision to stand down as Nick Faldo's vice-captain for next year's Ryder Cup match in Valhalla.

Of that decision to give up the vice-captaincy, McGinley explained: "The longer I did the job, the more I realised it was a drain on my energy . . . down the road, maybe I can be part of Ryder Cup captaincies but I don't think I'm ready for it just yet."

Instead, it is days like yesterday he craves.

In what has been one of his worst seasons on tour (he will finish 74th, faring poorer only in his rookie season, 1992), McGinley has failed to ignite. The reason?

"I really don't know," he said. "I haven't played well enough; that's the bottom line. I haven't played to a high-enough standard. I don't think I've swung the club well. I got a bit confused and I'm going to put quite a lot of work in over the winter and become clearer in what I'm doing."

Acknowledging he had "fallen like a stone in the world rankings" because of failing to have any big finishes this season, he at least gave an inkling yesterday of what he can do.

"I'm determined to come back and I know there's a lot more golf left in me," insisted McGinley, who turns 42 next month.

His round only caught fire coming in. He hit a two-iron on the par-three 15th to 15 feet and holed the putt, and on the next his nine-iron approach from 155 yards pitched three yards from the hole and conveniently ran into the cup.

"Did I play fantastically well? No. Did I play very well? Yes. You needed a lot of ball control, to work it into the wind so that it lands softly on the fairway. It demanded a lot of skill."

Knowing one fine day does not a summer make, McGinley nevertheless can head into the next days aware his game has not totally deserted him and that, maybe, the invitation here can act as a late kick-start to a season that never got going. A case of better late than never, perhaps?