M ichael Campbell has never made any secret of the importance he attaches to being a father. Indeed, after the birth of his first child, Thomas, the New Zealander publicly attributed the responsibility of parenthood for his improved 1999 season.
Therefore, it should not have been a surprise that the arrival of his second son, Jordan, in December 2000, heralded another bountiful spell, one which manifested itself in a successful defence of the Heineken Classic at The Vines Resort in Perth.
Going into the final round only two strokes off the lead might be enough to give some golfers, if not a sleepless night, then certainly a restless morning. But not Campbell. His initial concern was spending quality time with his family, sitting round the breakfast table like any normal father on a Sunday morning.
An hour-long practice session on the putting green the previous evening had reassured Campbell normal service would be restored in that department, after three days where his stubborn putter had given him little assistance. Such was his personal contentment and professional confidence it enabled the New Zealander to focus on the task ahead, rather than look back.
It meant he was able to play for four hours in the blistering heat without once losing his mental stability. It meant he comfortably overtook third round leader Nick O’Hern with a closing 64. It meant he was the champion again.
“When you get into that zone, nothing disturbs you,’’said Campbell who eventually finished five shots clear of fellow New Zealander David Smail with O’Hern in third. “You are so focused. I am in my own little bubble and no other influence in the world can distract me from my goal. Sometimes you don’t even hear the wind or the crowds roaring or anything else apart from your own thoughts.”
The professional search for perfection can be interrupted by a technical flaw, but more often than not it can be attributed to a simple distraction. Suddenly the fairways narrow, the greens appear to be halved in size by bunkers and a sense of claustrophobia takes over. Campbell claimed even if a 747 had roared overhead into the Perth sky, he would not have heard it.
It has always been in Campbell’s nature to shoot for the pins at all times. Even so, his closing 64 was an impressive performance from the moment he followed an opening bogey with three successive birdies to serve notice on O’Hern that there was to be a titanic challenge on the superbly prepared course.
In fact, O’Hern contributed to his own downfall as he relinquished his advantage by taking eight at the sixth. Dean Robertson had held the lead following a first round of 65, one ahead of Greg Norman and O’Hern, but at the halfway stage O’Hern (69) shared the lead with Steen Tinning, who followed a 69 with a 66. “If I win the tournament, fantastic,” said O’Hern. “If not there are plenty more to play. It’s not something I’m going to lose sleep over.”
O’Hern had good reason to remain in a similar mood as, playing in front of a gallery that included family and friends, he played the last 11 holes in five under for another 69 for 204 - two ahead of Campbell and three in front of Peter Lonard, Robertson and Tinning.
The left-hander however, went from pacesetter to pursuer as, at the sixth hole, he plunged from 14 under to ten under, from two ahead of Campbell to two behind. O’Hern had struck his tee shot in the right fairway bunker on the 437 yards hole and, in his own words, “probably made the wrong decision with his next shot. I should have gone out sideways, rather than going for too much. From there I just got a couple of bad lies. Eight shots is pretty easy to rack up on this course.”
O’Hern was to be applauded for the manner in which he fought back, even if after a 72 he was passed for second place by Smail, who shot a second successive 66. But for all that, this was a tournament that belonged to Campbell.
He made ten birdies and two bogeys for the low round of the tournament and his 64 was just one short of the course record. Moreover, it was Campbell’s sixth win in 33 tournaments. “I putted unbelievably in the last round,” said Campbell. “I knew I had played so well from tee to green on the first three days that I only had to start making some putts to be right in it. Now I want to become one of the top five golfers in the world.”
In years to come Thomas and Jordan might appreciate that fact but for the moment they are more concerned with daddy’s qualities as a father. To them of course, in that realm, he is already Number One.
Mitchell Platts.
This article has been reproduced from The 14th Edition of The European Tour Yearbook which can be purchased at a special price direct via the Order Form.
