Craig
Howie feels ready to “turn things around” after admitting that a
combination of playing poorly, losing his status and having health
issues had “worn me down” at the end of last season.
The
Peebles man was playing on the DP World Tour as recently as 2022 and,
finishing 135th in the Race to Dubai that season, wasn’t far away from
retaining his seat at the top table.
In 2020, when Challenge Tour players secured some unexpected starts in
DP World Tour events during the Covid pandemic, Howie finished
joint-fourth in the Austrian Open and shared fifth spot in the ISPS
Handa UK Championship.
Since finding himself back on what is now called the Hotel Planner Tour,
though, it’s been a bit of a struggle for the University of Stirling
graduate, finishing 37th in the Road to Mallorca Rankings in 2023 but
then dropping to 87th last year.
That
left Howie, who won the Range Servant Challenge by Hinton Golf on the
second-tier tour in 2021 as he graduated at the end of that season along
with Ewen Ferguson, missing out on the circuit’s season-starting South
African Swing.
But,
thanks to the set up in place through the Farmfoods Scottish Challenge
supported by The R&A for invitations in other events, his 2025
campaign is about to get underway with a double-header in India,
starting with the Kolkata Challenge this week.
“My
winter has looked slightly different to previous years,” Howie, who is
managed by Paul Lawrie through his Five Star
“Things
obviously haven’t gone to plan since graduating from the Challenge Tour
in 2021. Last year was definitely my toughest mentally, especially by
the back end of the season where the game had just worn me down.
“This
lay-off has given me some much needed time away from competition. It’s
given me the opportunity to figure out a few things and make some
changes across the board.”
A
significant one was deciding to link up with Alan McCloskey, the
Bothwell Castle professional who has worked with both Lawrie and David
Law among others on their swings in recent years.
“After Q-School last year, I got stuck into a few swing faults, nothing
too major but I’d fallen into an exaggerated left pattern that needed to
be softened,” added Howie. “We have done a really good job with that
now and I’ve seen some positive results so far. I played a couple of
warm up events in Portugal in February to get ready for India and the
game was in good shape.”
Howie
has secured a Category 4a spot in this week’s event along with Calum
Fyfe, Sam Locke and Gregor Graham, the quartet joining Hotel Planner
Tour regulars Law, Euan Walker, Daniel Young and Ryan Lumsden in flying
the Saltire at Royal Calcutta Golf Club.
“I’m
looking forward to getting going in this Indian Swing,” said Howie. “We
play two fantastic courses and, whilst my results last year weren’t
anything to shout home about, I believe they are two courses I can
absolutely compete on.
“I’ve
already ran into a slight problem, however. I currently have no golf
clubs as they never made it onto my flight from Dubai earlier in the
week and I am very much hoping they will make it to Kolkata before the
tournament starts.
“As
for the season as a whole, there’s reason to be optimistic. I believe
I’m already doing a lot of good things so far this year and I think I
can turn that into good results.
“Playing
poorly, losing status or having health issues are never fun at the
time, but I do think all these things will make me a better player going
forward, definitely a more resilient person, and it’s lit a fire under
my ass to turn things around and prove I’ve got what it takes.”
Sports Agency, told The Scotsman. “I’ve spent more time in Peebles over the last five months than I have over the previous five years combined!
