Ian Poulter on restrictive European Tour, Bryson DeChambeau's 'freak' win and Ryder Cup ambitions
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Poulter said the conditions in round three of the Scottish Open were the toughest he had faced in 21 years
Ian Poulter has never been short of voicing his opinions and he is in fine form after his joint sixth place finish at last week's Scottish Open.
The Florida-based Englishman is back in Britain to also play at this week's BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth but says he is feeling "restricted" by the European Tour's coronavirus protocols, in comparison with those on the PGA Tour.
During our Zoom call he makes it clear he would prefer more latitude than he currently has in the tournament bubble, while accepting the reasons why they are in place.
He also calls Bryson DeChambeau's recent US Open win a "freak" but one worthy of great admiration.
The 44-year-old reaffirmed his commitment to the European Ryder Cup cause, admitting it remains the "fuel to his golfing fire," and to the tour's Race to Dubai which concludes at the DP World Tour Championship this December.
But his assessment of the Covid protocols he is currently experiencing during his first European Tour action since lockdown draw most attention.
"It is different," he said when asked to compare the experience of playing on the PGA Tour with that of last week at Renaissance Club, near North Berwick.
"The protocols in place were very tight. We weren't allowed off site, no real interactions, which is understandable but it is different.
"In America, as long as we are sensible and use common sense, we can wear a face mask and go and retrieve food at night, or go and dine in a restaurant provided you stick to the protocols in place. But that isn't the case on the European Tour.
"And that is a difficult thing to get to grips with. You feel restricted and that's difficult, even as palatial as the place we had to stay in last week was."
Poulter enjoyed rustling up cooked breakfasts for fellow competitor Graeme McDowell and their two caddies in the on-site property they were sharing.
"It was great," he said. "But it still felt restrictive because you couldn't get back out and that's not a nice feeling. But it's the protocols and we have to abide by all of those rules, making sure that the bubble stays tight."
Poulter described the regime as "very weird", given the usual level of autonomy professional golfers enjoy. "All of a sudden you're governed by the rules of - play golf, eat, go to sleep, play golf, eat, go to sleep and that's just not a comfortable thing to get used to.
"But I get it from a standpoint of the protocols that have been put into place."
Poulter insists the more relaxed rules in America have proved effective for the players. "There have been so few cases in a country that was really struggling with Covid from a numbers perspective," he said.
"Generally the players did a good job of policing themselves and making sure they weren't compromised.
"There needs to be a level of sensibility in thinking about letting the players go and get groceries and to be able to just move around.
"We got told to stay apart from Terry (caddie Terry Mundy) during the week - you know 'make sure you don't get too close to Terry'. Well hang on a minute, I've just driven in a car with him for five and a half hours to Scotland!
"I'm not sure I could get any closer to him if I actually tried, without giving him a hug. It's protocol. I get it. They have to continue to tell us the same story, right?
"But I just think we need to use a level of common sense. There is definitely common sense being used and caution. I'm not saying we have to let the guard down but we need to all be very sensible."
Nevertheless Poulter is delighted to be competing at this week's PGA, the biggest tournament in England in 2020. He is one of several big names on show including defending champion Danny Willett, Olympic champion Justin Rose and American Patrick Reed.
"I think it's important for the European Tour and all its partners to collectively get together to make sure we are playing as many tournaments as we possibly can and give playing opportunities where we can," he added.
The Scottish Open produced a thrilling climax with Aaron Rai beating Tommy Fleetwood (another big name at Wentworth) in a sudden death play-off.
Poulter's chances were scuppered when he drove out of bounds on the 13th hole of the final round. He finished with birdies at the final two holes and wants to take that momentum on to the West Course this week.
"It's another big event at a great venue," he said. "I think it's important for the European Tour to be able to have a number of great players playing."
He is aware that we would ordinarily have been digesting the outcome the Ryder Cup at this time of year, but Europe's defence of the trophy has been delayed 12 months because of the pandemic.
When I point out that he will be another year older by the time the match finally happens, Poulter is quick to shut down the negative connotations of his veteran status. "Yeah but I'm going to be another year wiser, Iain," he smiles.
"You can't turn back time, but one thing you can do is make sure that you are healthy, fit and ready to go."
Having been on the winning side in five of his six appearances, he is not ready to give up on his Ryder Cup career. "I'd love to be at Whistling Straits, I'd love to be there having Padraig (Harrington) as my captain," he said.
"It keeps the fire burning and I think I've got a good few years left in me."
But Poulter knows he is among the older stagers in a game that is changing rapidly. The bulked up DeChambeau powered his way to the US Open last month with his unique and revolutionary techniques.
"It's a freak, that's what it is," Poulter said. "You have to admire what he has gone on to do and what he has put his body through to try and make those gains.
"It is something that I wouldn't do. There are not many players in the world that would take that level of a risk and that's what I see he has done. He's taken on a risk that could have taken him out of golf completely.
"If he'd put on all that weight and muscle and lost his golf game then people would have criticised and said he was stupid."
Instead, DeChambeau offers a potential blueprint for the future of the game. "He hit 23 fairways at the US Open, so he played the game that they really didn't want - hitting seven less fairways than any previous winner," Poulter observed.
"He played the smash and grab and it worked to his advantage."
The Englishman is at a loss as to how the game might combat the vast distances the ball now travels, and conceded: "The kids of today are a lot stronger and the club is being swung much, much harder than it was back in the day."
But that does not diminish Poulter's desire to continue to compete. He is looking for a big week at Wentworth to ignite his challenge for the European Tour's money list which concludes in Dubai in December.
Before that there is next month's Masters where he was 12th last year. The protocols are likely to be a little more relaxed at Augusta and in the meantime his aim is to make the most of his time in the tighter European Tour bubble.