SCOT RISES TO THE CHALLENGE

McLeary’s career on the verge of positive eruption

From: Michael Gibbson, European Challenge Tour Press Officer
It’s often said that golfers will go to any lengths to reach the top of their profession, but last week’s Scottish Hydro Challenge champion Jamie McLeary has surely taken that maxim to a new level after revealing that he prepared for the 2009 season by running up a volcano!
Thankfully for Scot McLeary, the volcano – a famous Edinburgh landmark known as Arthur’s Seat, whose shadow looms large over Scotland’s capital city – has been extinct for centuries and is thought to have last erupted some 350 million years ago.
The 28 year old, whose €32,000 victory at the Macdonald Spey Valley Golf Club on Sunday saw him move to 11th on the Challenge Tour Rankings and into position to claim one of the 20 available European Tour cards on offer at the end of the season, has been working on a specific fitness plan to manage a thoracic spine injury that causes a muscle spasm down the side of his ribs.
While his injury looks likely to be with him for the rest of his career, McLeary has enlisted the help of Alex Woods and his company, Golf Fit Ltd, who, unsurprisingly, specialise in golf biomechanics and are experts in fitness programmes specific to professional golfers.
Part of Woods’ fitness regime for McLeary involves sprinting to the summit of Arthur’s Seat in brutal winter conditions, and the Scot is hopeful that this punishing training plan can see his career continue to erupt towards the game’s highest level.
“My back is fine although I felt it a little bit at Spey Valley last week with hitting a lot of low punchy shots,” said McLeary after his two stroke win over Edoardo Molinari at Spey Valley. “But it is okay – the problem will be with me for the rest of my life but as long as I am careful with it then it shouldn’t be a problem.
“I am working with Alex Woods from Golf Fit on my flexibility. I do a lot of strengthening the back as well as mobility, stability, and power. I actually go running with him up Arthur’s Seat in the winter which is tough because it is very steep at the top.
“Running up an extinct volcano in the winter when it is often covered in snow is not something that you particularly look forward to, but at least we don’t run up the whole thing. We run up the steepest part – from the middle duck pond to the summit. As I said we often run up there in the snow which can be awful but it is worth it.”
It will certainly be worth it if McLeary, whose fiancée, Cheryl, is due to give birth to the couple’s first child next month, can maintain his position on the Rankings and secure place on The European Tour next season.
“The Challenge Tour is a great place to learn your trade but we all want to playing on The European Tour and seeing how we do against the best players in the world,” he said. “I am in the top 20 on the Rankings now and have to try and stay there.”