Séamus Power is blown away by the money in modern golf but his Hero Cup appearance also made him aware of the competition he faces to make the Ryder Cup team.
he Waterford man has soared to 29th in the world and taken his PGA TOUR career earnings to $9.3 million (€8.6m), overtaking Darren Clarke’s $8.6m (€7.9m) thanks to two wins in the last 18 months.
But as he chases valuable Ryder Cup points alongside Shane Lowry, Pádraig Harrington and rookie Tom McKibbin in the $9 million (€8.3m) Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links, he knows he must play well to make the team for Rome.
“When you’re in the US, you just hear about how many good players are in the US,” said Power, who plays with his Hero Cup fourball partner Robert MacIntyre and Swede Alex Noren behind Lowry, Tommy Fleetwood and defending champion Thomas Pieters.
“All of a sudden last week, I played against guys that were fantastic players and you see the depth of talent. When you talk about Rory (McIlroy), Jon (Rahm), Viktor (Hovland), and Fitz (Matt Fitzpatrick) not being there; it was amazing to see. I played with Nicolai on Sunday, an amazing player. Bob MacIntyre in fourball was a joy to play with, so easy going.
“Those things were my biggest takeaways. I know I have to work hard and play very well this week if I want a chance to be in Rome.”
Power admits he has to pinch himself when he thinks of the prize money on offer these days.
“It’s crazy now,” he said. “My caddie and I were talking about this only a couple of days ago. Some of the figures going around, it’s just astronomical some of these prize funds and stuff . . . what age am I, 35? Guys late 40s and more must be looking at it and want to punch the lot of us.”
This week’s Rolex Series event in Abu Dhabi is a massive opportunity for McKibbin (20), who only got in via the reserve list on Monday and is looking to shine in his 14th tour start having made four cheques from four starts since graduating from the Challenge Tour.
Harrington will be making his 467th DP World Tour start having opted against teeing it up alongside Darren Clarke in the season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai on the PGA Tour Champions in Hawaii.
The PGA Tour is in La Quinta for The American Express, with Jon Rahm seeking his fourth win in his last six starts.
But with LIV Golf rebels Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood and Bernd Wiesberger all on the non-televised side of the draw in Abu Dhabi, Rahm believes the DP World Tour has already decided not to allow them near the Ryder Cup.
“I saw the Ryder Cup posted a video of (Francesco) Molinari’s birthday the day before I knew it was Sergio’s (Garcia) birthday and they didn’t do it, so I think the decision has been made for me,” Rahm, a big advocate of having LIV players in Rome, told the ‘No Laying Up’ podcast.
Meanwhile, Leona Maguire is looking to start the LPGA season with a big week in the winners-only Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions at her Lake Nona base.
“This is my home course. It’s so nice to be here,” said the Co Cavan star.
“I was here last year just practising, so that was a goal of mine last year, to be back here for the tournament this year.
“It would be really nice to play well here. But get back into the swing of things, get the competitive juices flowing again, and ultimately give myself as good a chance as possible.”
