Thirst for big prizes drives on Willett in second season

A top-60 place on the Order of Merit, qualification for the end-of-season cash bonanza in Dubai, eight top-10 finishes and more than 500,000 earned in one year.

Not bad for a 22-year-old and a professional rookie for that matter.

But it proved to be not enough for Danny Willett, whose hunger for success renders any moderate achievement insignificant.

He is quick to acknowledge he can look back with a modicum of pride on 2009, but the Sheffield-born, Rotherham Golf Club member has no intention of resting on such laurels.

Golf is one of those rare sports where its protagonists can have a shelf-life of three decades, so there are plenty of riches and adulation to come for the former world No 1 amateur.

Having held such a high office, though, Willett has already demonstrated his thirst for the big prizes and his ability to win them when in a position to do so.

All of which means the absence of a victory on his maiden journey through a European Tour season, and leaves him reflecting on 2009 with mixed emotions.

"If someone had told me at the start of the year I'd get so many top 10s, finish 58th on the Order of Merit and qualify for Dubai I would have taken it," admits Willett, who today flies off to South Africa to compete in the Joburg Open on Thursday, his first event of the 2010 campaign.

"I felt a little bit disappointed at times though. There were a few missed opportunities in there.

"This year I want to get into contention more often. I need to kick on really and would love to be able to play in a few of the majors. For my first year out there, getting to Dubai was a good achievement, but I then went and let myself down when I was there."

What he is proud of most is how all his rewards last year came courtesy of his own hard work.

After breezing through qualifying school in November 2008 – a rigourous six-round examination that can make or break a golfer's career – his category 11 status on the Tour only entitled him to exemption to a handful of events.

Sponsors invites were not forthcoming as they were to more established pros and he missed out on competing in some of the Tour's flagship events in 2009 – when the big money is available.

In the absence of help, he had to play his way into tournaments, which became easier after such a promising start with a fourth-place finish in Joburg and then eighth in Abu Dhabi the following week.

"I ended up doing everything off my own back which is a little more satisfying," says Willett.

"Everything I got out of last year I had to put in myself. But fortunately now with my status I get into nearly everything."

His 58th-place finish on the Order of Merit has earned him a ticket to as many Tour events as he wishes in 2010.

Willett's campaign begins in Johannesburg next week, from where he heads to Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Dubai before returning for a two-week break to work on his game with coach Graham Walker at The Oaks, York.

Then it's back out to Malaysia before the European Tour returns to its home continent. All of which is exciting for a young man who also hopes to highlight his year by qualifying for a major championship debut at either the Open or the US Open in the summer.

Breaking into the top 100 by then and qualifying for the US PGA is also within reach for a player ranked 139th in the world.

"I jotted down some certain goals which mainly for me are process-orientated rather than outcome orientated," he explains of his approach to a second year on Tour.

"First and foremost it's about trying to win enough to seal my card and then get a place in Dubai.

"If I keep working hard then the outcomes will eventually take care of themselves.

"I had a lot of experience of winning as an amateur.

"I've not had that yet as a professional but I'm confident that once I do a couple more will follow.

"Getting into contention is the aim this season and to help me towards that process I've been seeing a sports psychologist about it and talking a lot with Graham about it. It's just about trying to channel that into my game now."

While he may not admit it himself, another year as impressive as his debut season would see him break through the 1m barrier in earnings in just two years.

It's a life-changing sum of money that has been another area he has had to adjust to.

"Your life does change when you're playing on Tour," says Willett who only two-and-a-half years ago was crowned the Yorkshire Amateur champion. "Winning some money has enabled me to buy a house for myself.

"Things have changed but that's where friends and family come in. I've got a really good group around me that keep me grounded and remind me where I came from.

"You need to enjoy the money otherwise there's no point in earning it. A lot of guys' careers go into their 50s so I've got plenty of time.

"I have been putting a little away because you never know if injury is going to come and end it all."

Hopefully, this young golfer will be around for a long time to come.

Danny Willett's tour to date

2008

March: Open de Andalucia, 19th*

May: Spanish Open, 10th*

2009

January: Joburg Open, 4th.

January: Abu Dhabi Championship, 8th.

April: Ballantine's Championship (S Korea), 8th.

June: Celtic Manor Wales Open, 4th.

June: BMW International Open, 9th.

July: Open de France, 10th.

October: Madrid Masters, 7th.

October: Portugal Masters, 6th.

n Order of Merit: 58th, earnings 536,577.

* denotes as an amateur