MONTY TO TAKE RYDER CUP TO SHOW TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE
By OLIVER BROWN
Colin Montgomerie is to make a radical departure from the luxuries of the golf circuit this week when he visits British troops in Afghanistan, taking Europe’s Ryder Cup trophy with him.
The Scot will spend four days with army personnel and British Embassy staff, while he also intends to inspect Kabul Golf Club in the Afghan capital, easily the most dangerous course in the world. The scrub-covered fairways are at continual risk from suicide bomb attacks.
Montgomerie disclosed that he would be carrying the Samuel Ryder Trophy with him, after his European team so memorably wrested it back from the United States at Celtic Manor last autumn.
He plans to hand out a selection of golf equipment to the soldiers, too. “I am looking forward to it very much,” he said. “I’m not taking my own golf clubs but I have gathered together a lot of equipment for the troops. It’s going to be a special occasion as I have never undertaken anything like this before.”
From Kabul, Montgomerie will head straight to Hong Kong for the UBS Open, in pursuit of a strong performance that could secure him a place at next month’s Dubai World Championship.
Although the 48 year-old has fallen to 102nd in the European money list, and out of the world’s top 300, he has still not abandoned hope of reviving his best form.
He has even acknowledged a desire to play on Jose María Olazábal’s Ryder Cup team at Medinah next year, for what would be his ninth appearance.
Montgomerie must win at least twice in the next eight months to stand a chance of a wild card selection.
Meanwhile, ahead of the World Cup here on Hainan Island, Graeme McDowell predicted that his renowned dynamic with Rory McIlroy could propel Ireland to the victory that narrowly eluded them two years ago.
The Ulstermen finished joint runners-up at Shenzhen in 2009 but were impressive together in the last Ryder Cup and have each won a US Open title since.
“I’m excited to be playing alongside Rory,” McDowell said. “He’s in great form and the world No 2. I guess you could say I’ve got myself a decent partner this week.
“You have to be able to motivate and inspire each other, and Rory and I would dearly love to win this week. So I hope we can use our experiences of the last couple of years to good effect.”
+Colin Montgomerie is used to taking the Ryder Cup with him on his travels and he does it with a lot of style and panache. Colin is pictured above last February at a Deeside Golf Club junior prizegiving with one of the Editor's grandsons, Michael Black, eight-year-old son of former Scottish champion and two-time Curtis Cup player, Elaine Farquharson-Black. The picture's copyright is retained by aberdeenphoto.com