GRAEME STORM returns to the scene of his finest hour tomorrow accepting that his second European Tour triumph has been harder to deliver than the first.
But Storm’s admission should not be perceived as a lack of confidence as he heads for Le Golf National looking to win the Open de France for the second time in three years.
Instead the 31-year-old has gone to Paris refreshed and revitalised by his decision a couple of weeks ago to gamble on changing his bag man.
Despite missing the cut at the Celtic Manor Wales Open, his partnership with Darren Reynolds, the former caddie of Paul McGinley, has started in exactly the sort of style he had hoped for.
After blowing away the competition to qualify for the Open Championship at Sunningdale on June 8 courtesy of a course record 64, Storm carded his second highest finish of the season at the BMW International Open last weekend.
While fourth spot in Munich boosted his season’s earnings by a healthy 78,000 euros, Storm is more satisfied with the way his form has been taking shape at such a crucial stage of the season.
After relative success at Open qualifying and in Germany, the Wynyard Golf Club professional now has his eyes firmly fixed on continuing his resurgence in the next few weeks.
“There’s massive money to play for and there is a lot of prestige with these tournaments that are coming up,”
said Storm. “The Open speaks for itself, but building up to that there are big purses up for grabs in Paris and at the Scottish Open in Loch Lomond.
“At this stage it’s just nice to know what your schedule is going to be like over the next few weeks and hopefully I can record some more top ten finishes.”
His tied fourth place in Munich last weekend was only the second time this season that Storm has finished in the top ten, having claimed tied third at the Open de Andalucia in March.
Storm, however, has not been entirely happy with parts of his game this season, although he is satisfied that introducing Reynolds has brought immediate improvements.
“It’s been a fresh start for me and Darren,” said Storm, who is due to reassess the caddie situation after the Open.
“We have a few more weeks together before we have to decide but it’s going well.
“I knew him before so it’s not as if we are starting something completely new, but things have started really well.
“It’s just nice to go out and just able to concentrate on my game again.
“What I want is to get my second European Tour win. I thought it would have arrived by now but I’m told that sometimes it’s harder to win the second one than it is the first – that’s what has happened.
“But I have been changing many things, spending more time in the gym, and that has taken some adjusting to.
“But I have certainly felt more comfortable in the last few weeks, so hopefully I’m getting back to my best form.”
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