Ryder Cup star Sergio Garcia is desperate to prove he has what it takes to win a Major at Turnberry this week.
The 29 year old has been a Major runner-up three times, twice at the US PGA Championship in 1999 and 2008 and in The Open Championship two years ago.
Carnoustie in 2007 is the closest he has come to winning a Major, with his putt to be crowned champion on the 72nd hole just missing and ultimately resulting on a one stroke play-off defeat to Padraig Harrington.
The Spaniard has proved he can handle pressure at the highest level with some inspirational performances in five Ryder Cups, but he is desperate to transfer that form to the individual arena.
“I guess you have to look at someone’s career and see how they’ve done in Majors and everything,” he said on the eve of The 138th Open Championship at Turnberry.
“There are moments where you feel like you’ve maybe been a bit unlucky but I’ve just come up against some guys who have raised their game and played amazing on the last round or last four or five holes when they’ve needed to.
“I feel I’ve given it my hardest. The most important thing for me is obviously winning but at least I’m having the chance, being up there and giving myself an opportunity. I know they say second is the first loser but I’d rather be the first loser than the 39th loser.
“The only thing you can do is keep giving yourself chances and make sure that it happens.”
Garcia has, of course, won the unofficial fifth major, as the Americans like to call the Players Championship at Sawgrass, and that is something he has in common with Sweden’s Henrik Stenson.
The Spaniard was replaced as champion by his Ryder Cup team-mate this year and the World Number Eight followed that up with a ninth placed finish at last month’s US Open Championship.
It was his third successive top ten finish in a Major - he was joint third at last year’s Open Championship and tied fourth at the US PGA Championship - and Stenson is feeling confident.
“Obviously I can bring a lot of good experiences from Sawgrass and I think what I did at the US Open in terms of battling and being patient will also help,” he said.
“These are definitely important things to have if you want to win big championships. If I can do the same and play a bit better I hope I can be up there and contending by Sunday.”
Meanwhile former Open Championship winner Ernie Els wants to put a difficult 16 months behind him with a good performance at Turnberry this week.
The South African, victor at Muirfield in 2002 and also a double US Open Championship winner, has missed the cut in the last two Majors and not recorded a first place finish since March 2008.
His form in this year’s Majors has not been as good as he would have hoped, after missing the cut in the Masters Tournament at Augusta, he missed the cut at the US Open Championship at Bethpage on 15 over with rounds of 78 and 77.
But Els is putting those memories to the back of his mind.
“I’m looking to the future,” the two time European Number One said. “It didn’t go well in the other Majors but I’m looking forward to this one.
“Obviously I can’t talk about my record now because it is non-existent but I’m feeling good. My game is coming around nicely and I’m playing pretty good and feel like I have a chance to win this week.
“I definitely feel like I have the drive and the desire to get back to winning more golf tournaments.”