Colin Montgomerie goes ‘back to the future’ with club change

COLIN Montgomerie has rectified a decision many believed was the biggest mistake of his career and probably hampered his chances of winning a major.

On the eve of the Volvo Golf Champions event at Fancourt, the 48-year-old Scot revealed he is back using Callaway clubs.

Montgomerie was a Callaway staff professional, earning a reported £1million per year, when he ruled the European Tour by winning seven Order of Merit titles in a row.

It was a major surprise when he switched to Ben Hogan equipment at the start of the 2003 season. “I was thrown by my switch from Callaway to Hogan,” he admitted later.

Montgomerie signed for Yonex in 2004 and has been using the Japanese company’s clubs ever since, but now he is heading into his first event of the new season with Callaway equipment back in his bag.

“I’m back with Callaway after an eight-year gap,” he revealed. “Most of my success came with them and it’s a little bit of back to the future really.”

Montgomerie is in the 35-strong field at Fancourt along with all last year’s European Tour winners, including Paul Lawrie, on the back of winning more than 10 titles in his career.

He’s determined to try and return to the winner’s circle after a gap of more than four years and, in addition to his irons, the Scot also has a new putter, which took to his hotel room last night to try to “make it my best friend”.

He added: “I’m hitting the ball well tee to green and now I’ve got to putt better than well. I know I have to putt very, very well to compete with the longer hitters out here.

“I’m looking forward to trying to win. That’s the goal and I’ve changed equipment to try to realise it.”

Lawrie, last year’s Andalucia Open winner, is hoping he’ll be able to take his place in the field despite only being able to play nine holes in yesterday’s pro-am due to back trouble.

“I had a muscle spasm in my back on the range so, after treatment, the Tour were ok for me to play only nine holes,” he said. “David Horsey took over and played the back nine with my pro-am team. I went back to see the physio who gave me some more pain....lovely. I should be ok for tomorrow, though.”

The Aberdonian is making his first appearance since finishing second in the Dubai World Championship.