Age: 29 | Resides: Scottsdale | Story: Finished a career-best 23rd on the PGA Tour money list in 2011 after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
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MY MOTIVATIONThere are a ton of guys worthy of being on the European Ryder Cup team, and I think I'm one of them. It's one of my biggest motivators in 2012. I'm not thinking about it on the course, but it would be an honor to represent Scotland and help Europe defend its title this year at Medinah. This group of players is one of the strongest Europe has had, so it would be great to just be a part of that effort.
PUTTING IT TOGETHERI'm fortunate that my putting has been consistent, and I owe a lot of that to switching to a blade-style putter. I had always been a mallet guy, but a blade is lighter, which helps my control on faster greens. I also have a little offset for better feel. Some advice from Dave Stockton Jr. last year helped me develop the feel I needed to putt confidently, and I've seen how much it has elevated my game.
BIG-TIME EATERI eat a lot on the golf course. In a typical round, I'll eat a couple bananas, a Clif Bar and some sort of sandwich, either PB&J, chicken or turkey. I need to eat a lot, but it's mostly out of habit now.
MY NUMBER GAMEI like to match the number on my Titleist Pro V1x with the round. If it's Thursday I'll use a 1, a 2 for Fridays, etc. If my caddie pulls a 4 on Saturday, it's not a big deal; it's just something I do.
A KICK FOR WATERDuring those really hot weeks, when you're drinking 10 water bottles a round, it gets boring. I need a little flavor. I'm a big fan of these electrolyte tablets.
DARKER MARKERThis is an older two pence coin I use from Britain. The new ones they make are awfully shiny, and I don't really like that. This one has been in my bag for a while, so it's rusty and brown. Just how it should be.
CLASS WELCOMINGI'd never seen Colorado State's campus until coming to the United States after accepting my scholarship offer. I loved my college experience. It gave me four years to practice, stress-free. You don't get that if you turn pro right away.
DRIVERWhen I find equipment I like (and it works), I keep it. I immediately gained 20 yards when I put this TaylorMade Burner SuperFast 2.0 (10.5 degrees, Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord 58 round grip) in my bag last year at Doral. Love at first sight. I am also testing the new R11S.
FAIRWAY WOODSThese are my TaylorMade R11 4-wood (15 degrees, open setting, Mitsubishi Diamana Kai'li 83 shaft) and R9 5-wood. I like the smaller head on a 4-wood as opposed to a normal fairway wood. The 5-wood is one of my favorite clubs.
IRONSFor my 3- and 4-irons, I play TaylorMade Tour Preferred (True Temper Project X Rifle 7.0 shafts). My 5-iron through pitching wedge are R9 TPs. I used to always carry a 2-iron, and I'll still use one at a course requiring irons off the tees, like Colonial.
WEDGESI use two Titleist Vokey wedges (55 and 60 degrees). It helps to have a 5-degree gap. The wedges are ground down so the leading edge is sharper. I don't like the rounded edge of an iron.
PUTTERI switched to this 45-inch TaylorMade Ghost Tour DA-12 (675 grams) belly putter in 2010 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. I had missed the previous three cuts but made nearly $2 million in the last nine events of the year, including a runner-up at The Barclays.