Di Dougherty meets: David Howell
When did you start playing golf?
I hit my first shots on holiday in Marbella when I was six or seven years old.
But I would say I really started when I was ten, first on the school playing fields behind our house and soon after at Broome Manor Golf Club, which just happened to be the perfect environment for a keen junior golfer.
Love the game immediately?
It’s safe to say I seemed to love golf right from the start.
I guess a combination of the feeling you get when you hit a shot sweetly for the first time and the challenge of lowering your score each time you play is very addictive.
Most frustrating aspect?
Golf is the most frustrating of sports because it’s so difficult to master and it changes every single day.
It certainly tests your love of the game every time you play, but ultimately when you play to the best of your ability when it matters to you most all the frustrations along the way are worth it.
You’ve won five times on tour and played in two Ryder Cups. What’s been the highlight?
As an individual, winning the 2006 BMW PGA at Wentworth tops the list.
However playing in my first winning Ryder cup team in 2004 was the culmination of a life-long dream so that has to rank right alongside it.
We are the same age and I still hope to win one so I can’t see why Tiger can’t.
Who would be in your dream fourball?
That would have to consist of Arnold Palmer, Seve, and my long since departed grandad, known as Jack.
He never got to see me become a professional and it would be really cool to see the look on his face when I turn up with two of the legends of the game.
I think we would play his home course, Bramshaw in Hampshire.
You commentate for Sky Sports. How long did it take you to get used to the cameras on you in the studio?
I really enjoy my TV work and I have to say I have always found it strange that I don’t feel a little more nervous in front of a live TV audience.
I think it just comes down to the fact that in the Sky studio it just feels like it’s three people just having a chat about the golf.
Albeit hopefully a knowledgeable one!
How many Majors will Rory win this year?
Rory is at the peak of his powers at the moment and his focus is right where it needs to be so he will be a big favourite when all the Majors come around I am sure.
Would I be surprised if he didn’t add to his collection in 2015?
Yes, I would be so I have him down for at least one.
Will Tiger win another Major?
I think for sure he will at some point, we are the same age and I still hope to win one so I can’t see why Tiger can’t.
He probably needs a nice period of calm though and to be injury free for a prolonged period.
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