POULTER SAYS MOVING HOUSE IS REASON FOR HIS POOR FORM

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE
By OLIVER BROWN, Shanghai
Ian Poulter, racked with self-reproach after a miserably anonymous season, has blamed his “terrible” form on the fact that he has been moving house.
The 35 year-old, who has not featured in the top 25 at any of the year’s four majors, claimed that the pressures of relocating at his exclusive gated enclave of Lake Nona, in Orlando, had become all-consuming.
Poulter secured a place at this week’s HSBC Champions in Shanghai on the strength of his victory at the Volvo World Matchplay in May, when he beat Luke Donald in the final. But he reflected here on the stress that has disfigured the rest of his campaign.
“There’s no getting away from it, I’ve played terribly,” he said. “It has all been way too much. I’ve had too much going on in my mind. So, I need to get rid of all that ---- and concentrate on playing golf again.
“I have been building a house and I won’t be moving in until March. It’s my house, and whether it’s a plug socket or the smallest furnishing, I have to make the final decisions. It’s my house — I don’t want someone else to choose something for it.
"That’s a time-consuming project and it eats away at time when I could be doing other stuff.
“It has been very stressful. It has cost twice as much and taken twice as long as I thought. It becomes expensive, not only on your house but also on your time.
Asked how much he believed he had spent on the property, Poulter, who has admitted previously to obsessive-compulsive tendencies, replied: “I’m not telling.”
Refusing to dwell upon his Matchplay win as a highlight, he said: “I’ve done nothing else apart from that, have I? But I’m a decent player. Every event that I play from now until the end of the year is serious.”
One player in a more restful mood on Tuesday was Rory McIlroy, who arrived at Sheshan International £1.25 million richer following his triumph at last week’s Shanghai Masters.
Rumours of a rift with Chubby Chandler, with whom he abruptly parted company last month, receded as the Northern Irishman was seen talking with his former manager on the practice range.