Paul McGinley shows true colours with his comment about golf rival Darren Clarke

Irish Daily Mirror

19-07-2025

Paul McGinley has rushed to the defence of Darren Clarke despite their past feud, debunking the myth that the Northern Irishman coasted on talent alone and didn't put in the hard graft required.
Clarke, 56, was once heralded as a prodigy in the world of golf, carrying his promise into a successful period in the late 1990s and early 2000s with two World Golf Championship wins. However, his major tournament record was a disappointment until he finally managed to win the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St George's, England, at his 54th major.
His well-known love for socialising and having fun has led some to believe that he could have achieved even more had he been more dedicated to the sport. But, speaking ahead of the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush, his former rival and friend McGinley dismissed such talk.
The Dubliner told Indo Sport: 'That's one of the biggest jokes in golf, the way Darren is positioned as this happy-go-lucky Irishman, always in good form, drinking and partying his head off, incredibly gifted and that's the success that he had.
'We all know and revel in how hard Padraig Harrington worked. I can promise you that golf meant as much, if not more, to Darren and he worked equally as hard. Having lived next door to him for 20 years in England, having seen the effort he put into practice…
'On top of the God-given talent that he had, he also worked at it and probably, in some ways, it hurt him more than it helped him because he was so obsessed with the game and worked so hard on the game that he went up blind alleys too regularly.
"I think he'd admit that himself. But he worked very hard and he had incredible ambition. I'm full of admiration for what he has done in his career.'
McGinley did, however, go on to shed light on his incredible natural talent, saying: 'I remember when I was playing Under-18s and barely getting into these junior programmes in Ireland. I was coming onto the scene but there was one guy who stood out from everybody else. Darren Clarke (L) and Paul McGinley (C) have become friends again since falling out (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
'He had bleach blonde hair, he came with an arrogance and a look of confidence about him. He had irons that the players were using on tour, he got all the latest gear and he hit the ball just phenomenally. He was in a different league to everybody else. So from the age of 16, Darren was a step ahead of everybody else.'
Despite such high praise, McGinley once had a bitter falling out with Clarke, who had controversially backtracked after initially supporting McGinley's campaign to become European captain for the 2014 Ryder Cup. Clarke wrote to him in 2011, offering his support to the Irishman's bid to lead at Gleneagles.
But in December 2012, Clarke told the BBC that he himself was a contender for the captaincy role and later seemed to support Colin Montgomerie - who had led in 2010 - after the United States chose Tom Watson. McGinley was ultimately named captain in 2013 and took Europe to a 16½-11½ success, earning praise from the likes of Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood and Sergio Garcia.
McGinley later admitted that the pair's exchanges had become "short and sweet". The rift between them was mended by 2016, as revealed by Clarke to the Daily Mail.
"Paul and I had a great conversation in Dubai. We must have stood and talked for an hour on the range. He was giving me tips and advice about what he had done. We had a great conversation there and I apologised to him," Clarke explained.
"I let things go. I have moved on. I have made my peace with Paul and he was brilliant in Dubai. I can go back to him and run things past him. He said, 'Whatever you want, let me know.'
"We have buried the hatchet and we are moving forward. We have drawn a line under it. He offered me all sorts of advice. He couldn't have been better. That feels good because we were very close growing up all the way through our careers.'