Notah Begay makes European comeback

Notah Begay at the US Masters with Tiger Woods and his caddie Steve Williams

In the Navajo language of the Native American Indian tribe, Notah Begay means ‘almost there’. Few people in sport can have a name that so clearly describes their life as this 34-year-old, who reached almost the top of the golfing tree only to fall all the way down again due to injury.

It has been a lonely return journey for Begay - Tiger Woods' Stanford University roommate and a four-time winner on the US PGA Tour - but it has been slow and steady. In 2007, it takes a gigantic step as this gentle but determined golfer, who was ranked once in the top 25 in the world and has played in the Presidents Cup as well as the World Matchplay at Wentworth, will play a full season on the European Tour worldwide circuit.

With his back injury finally cleared up, the immensely-experienced Begay will sprinkle some welcome US stardust on the European Tour. With his colourful past, his favouring of bright clothing, his huge diamond stud earrings and a disarming smile, the European Tour rookie is ready to win again.

“I’ve always wanted to play on the European Tour," he says "I had so much early success on the US Tour, winning four tournaments in the first two years that it never happened. Then I got hurt. That sent me into a downward spiral physically, emotionally and mentally and it has taken six years to get my game back together. Now I’m playing solidly and I’ll be able to come out and commit to a season in Europe.”

Europe's a needed change of scenery

And April is totally supportive of his decision. “The Tour in America is all the same,” she says. “We’ve talked about it for a couple of years and wanted to try it before we started a family.”

So the couple are now in the throes of putting their home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, into cold storage and searching for a European base in Spain.

“We like the weather here and we both speak some Spanish, so we’re excited,” says Notah, whose European card proved to be an early first wedding anniversary present. They celebrated 12 months of marriage four days later.

There was no special treatment for Begay during the 10 gruelling rounds he had to play to get his European privileges November. His former glories allowed him to by-pass the first Q-School stage in September, but he had to fight hard in the second stage in Costa Bellana. It proved to be one of the toughest experiences of his life.

Begay was forced into an eight-man playoff at the 2nd stage with only four spots available. Very relieved, he said that his up-and-down life had helped him cope with the pressure.

'Have to slow your swing when adrenalin is pumping'

Still acknowledged as 146th on the all-time US PGA Tour money list – Begay grabbed looked well in control in control at San Roque was never out of the front runners and eventually finished tied for 6th spot.

“Q-Schools are more nerve-wracking because the balance of your entire season is hanging on the result. It’s easy to get sucked into that nervousness because every shot really matters," he says. "If you’re in a major then you’re obviously playing pretty well and you’re making a good living and things are working out. And, aside from your competitive nature, there’s really not much more pressure. But at Q-School, the guys who don’t make it have nowhere to go. That’s pressure.”

An experienced campaginer since his college days at Stanford University, Begay has a new and high regard for European players whom he believes cope better than his fellow countrymen with bad weather.

“In Q-School we went through three kinds of different weathers in the first couple of days – cool, windy and hot – mentally that trains European players to be ready for anything. In the US we go to mainly warmer places and if it rains it’s usually lightning so we’re not playing. The most we do is play in some wind and it’s not usually that strong.

"In the last round of the 2nd stage of qualifying and the first two days of final qualifying, those were the three windiest days I’ve played all year and I’ve played 24 tournaments in the US. The courses (in Europe) are playable and you can shoot good scores and you just have to learn how to deal with this stuff and it sharpens your game.”

Notah and Tiger - Presidents Cup pairing

"There’s only a handful of those kinds of players left and I tip my hat to them because you have to be really good to do that. Your game has to hold up and you play with jetlag and you’re not always at your best. Ernie, Retief, Tiger – these are some of the players who do this consistently and the fans really appreciate it as well as the people in these different countries. Think of China; golf is a growing sport there and Tiger is possibly the best player ever to pick up a golf club and to be lucky enough to watch him play is mesmerising. I mean, I know about it first hand.”

But Tiger Woods cannot help his former college room-mate and Presidents Cup partner too much these days, their career paths couldn’t be more different.

“Tiger and I have often talked about how to win. You must keep fighting and fighting until the last nine holes of the tournament and if you have a chance then, the game can change a little bit,” Says Begay. “But right now the most important thing for me is not looking at scoring, but just looking at doing the best I can possibly do. Tiger and I are still very good friends. We spend a lot of time together in the off-season and his wife and my wife have become friends too because we are all the same age so all four of us get on pretty well.”

Notah Begay took one giant step back to the top when he qualified from the European Tour Q School, and – putting friendship aside - he has a real chance of closing in on the Tiger once again.