Clarke takes steps to Ryder Cup contention
Following a traumatic two years in the life of golfer Darren Clarke what a great boost it would be if he can force his way into Nick Faldo's Ryder Cup squad to face
In August 2006 the Northern Irishman lost his wife Heather to breast cancer at the age of just 39. And following a break from the game he bravely made himself available as a wildcard selection to
He went on to pick up a creditable three points on the way to a European victory against the Americans at the K Club.
However since that emotional event, Clarke admits he lost some love for the game as he failed to light up the European Tour and slipped down the order of Merit standings as a result.
Clarke looked a million miles away from being considered for this year's Ryder Cup - which would be his sixth successive appearance - as current captain Faldo will pick the top five players from the world rankings and the top five from the European Tour rankings with two wildcards to make up the 12.
However, with players such as Colin Montgomerie probably requiring wildcard selection, Clarke has taken up the challenge with some hard work on the course and was rewarded with victory in the BMW Asian Open in
Clarke's last win on the European Tour was five years ago at the WGC-NEC Invitational and he is hoping this latest title success will put him in the running for this year's Ryder Cup, although he accepts he still has a lot to do.
He said: "If I qualify for the Ryder Cup team that would be fantastic. That is back as a realistic goal now.
"I have given myself a bit of a boost but there is still a long way to qualify for the team.
"There is nothing that helps your confidence like wining, whatever way you do it, and it feels good.
"My focus is to keep playing as good a golf as I can and I do desperately want to be at
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