Oliver Wilson is taking inspiration from the world’s best as he swaps his clubs for a microphone at the US PGA Championship.
The journey from tee box to commentary box is a common one for many in the modern game and Charlotte resident Wilson this week has a watching brief at Quail Hollow Club for BBC radio in the UK.
Fellow two-time DP World Tour winner James Morrison has also recently started doing some media work alongside a HotelPlanner Tour schedule and while it is a future career in which Wilson has an interest, he is also hoping to use it as a motivation on the course.
“The Majors are where you want to be,” he said. “You want to be playing them so any opportunity to do that is always fun but if you if you can't play in them then this is not a bad thing because it definitely helps inspire you.
“Coming here and doing this while staying at home is very different. I’ve done a bit of media stuff before but never at home so it’s a nice balance, it’s been fun.
“I know the course somewhat. I don’t play here a whole lot. I’d much rather be playing than commentating on it but it’s fun to commentate and see what’s going on and watch the top players in the world a little bit more closely than I would normally.
“If you can’t be in that arena playing then to be close to it and try and feel a bit of the buzz is not a bad thing. I’m enjoying the week.
“I would definitely like to do more media stuff. The desire to play golf is still there but I've got two young boys and things change, priorities change.
“I enjoy doing the media and it does inspire me. I'm keen to try and find that balance where I can do as much media as I can but still continue to play.”
Wilson’s desire to play has never been in question in a career that has seen him go from a Ryder Cup appearance in 2008 to spells on the HotelPlanner Tour – where he also has two victories - around his DP World Tour triumphs at the 2014 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and 2022 Made in HimmerLand.
Currently without full status on the DP World Tour, he made the cut in his first start of the season last week at the Turkish Airlines Open following a late dash across the world from his North Carolina home.
Wilson admits being US-based can make it difficult to maintain a schedule on the HotelPlanner and DP World Tours but he is happy with his game and believes another win may not be far away.
“I got in Turkey last minute which is a long way from here – 24 hours of travel – I was very jetlagged throughout the week but I played really nicely,” he said.
“I was excited to get back out there, I haven’t played a whole lot this year so it’s been nice to get back and get the juices flowing.
“I want to still compete, my game is in actually really good shape.
“I’d be lying if I didn't say the travel is hurting my game, back and forth from the US is hard. I've been to Cape Town, I’ve been to Dubai, I’ve been to Turkey so far this year. It's a long way and a lot of stress on your body.
“But I've got to find a way to make all that work and I'm keen to see what I can do because I feel like my game’s in the shape where maybe it’s as free as it's ever been. I definitely want to see what I can still do and certainly there’s some desire there.
“When I feel like I'm playing well then I know what to do and I can maximise it, I've just struggled technically-wise for a long time and never been able to put long enough spells together.
“I feel like that’s changing so I know what I'm capable of and I know how to get the job done. I’ve just got to keep doing it.”
Wilson’s run to the Ryder Cup team in 2008 remarkably came without him claiming a win and featured just one made cut in a Major as he sealed the final automatic qualifying spot in Sir Nick Faldo’s side for the contest at Valhalla.
The 44-year-old feels the global nature of the game now makes it more difficult to take his route to the biennial spectacular but he is not ruling out the likes of Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Laurie Canter and Martin Couvra challenging if they can make the field and compete at Major Championships.
“At the time, I learned I could compete,” Wilson said of his own Major experience which includes playing 11 in a row between 2008 and 2010.
“I had a mixed bag of results really, finished top 25 at all the Majors apart from Augusta. My career was going nicely. It was sort of trending the right way in 2009. I had three really good results in the Majors, really solid and world events too.
“And so I know where my game was at and I know what I was capable of, but then unfortunately I haven't followed up from that so it kind of took a detour and never got back to that level.
“But it was fun to be part of and and play the best courses under extreme tests, especially when Tiger was around as well, that was fun.
“I was in the group next to him at the U.S. Open at Torrey and was leading after about 33, 34 holes so I nearly got to play with him and ended up just missing out on the weekend.”
