WHEN Darren Clarke moved into professional ranks in August 1990, he took with him one of the most enviable matchplay records in Irish amateur golf. That expertise is now to be tested at The Buckinghamshire today, when he competes in the European section of the Andersen Consulting World Championship of Golf.
Clarke is the first Irish player to qualify for this $3.65 million event which has been won by Barry Lane and Greg Norman over the last two seasons. Through the Sony World Rankings, he comes in at number seven seed for a quarter-final clash with Bernhard Langer. Sam Torrance, last year's European winner, faces Ian Woosnam in the opposite end of the draw.
Though he will be looking some way beyond this match, Clarke is guaranteed handsome compensation should he fail to progress to the international finals in Scottsdale, Arizona, next January. First round losers today each receive $20,000, and beaten semi-finalists are guaranteed $70,000.
Tomorrow's runner-up will receive $150,000 and the eventual winner earns $200,000. More significantly, he goes forward with the other regional winners, including America's Davis Love, for the chance of a $1 million bonanza as international champion.
As an amateur, Clarke had a wonderful matchplay record, particularly during the 1990 season. Unbeaten in all the knock-out championships in which he competed that year, he captured the Spanish Amateur title at El Saler and went on to win the North of Ireland, South of Ireland and Irish Close titles.
"Bernhard has to be favourite," said Clarke yesterday. "In fact nobody expects me to win, so I've nothing to lose. I played The Buckinghamshire last Monday and I like my chances there." The 6,880-yard parkland stretch, where 1982 Irish Open champion, John O'Leary, is director of golf, was designed by John Jacobs in a heavily wooded estate of 248 acres.
Colin Montgomerie, the top seed, faces an extremely difficult opening match against Jose-Maria Olazabal. Indeed Clarke appears to have a more favourable draw, given that victory over Langer would put him through to a semi-final meeting with the winner of Costantino Rocca and Jesper Parnevik.
Gary Murphy, the 1992 Irish Amateur Close champion, is now qualified for two international professional tours. And in getting his Canadian card last weekend he discovered that a spectacular shot can be more rewarding than consistency over 72 holes.
Murphy, who competed on the Asian Tour earlier this year, finished third in the Canadian test in Vancouver with rounds of 77 68 64, 71 for an aggregate of eight-under-par. As it happened, the 64 included an albatross two at the long 10th for which he received a special award of $500: third place in the tour school earned him $400.
