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Nick - I underestimated grief

Liverpudlian reveals effect of mother's death on his game

Last updated: 2nd October 2008

Dougherty: difficult year

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Nick Dougherty is looking to put a traumatic year off the course behind him by retaining his Alfred Dunhill Links Championship crown this week.

The Liverpudlian was rocked by the sudden death of his mother Ennis in April and saw his form, understandably, suffer as a result.

Dougherty had looked on course to secure himself a place in Europe's Ryder Cup team for Valhalla before the tragedy, but eventually narrowly missed out.

The 26-year-old now admits he underestimated the effect the whole experience had on his game.

"I presumed it was the right thing to keep going, to try to make the (Ryder Cup) side as a lovely gesture to my mum but I was naive to think it would be that easy with the things I was thinking and feeling," Dougherty explained. "It truly wasn't.

"I really shouldn't have put myself under the pressure that I did.

"I presumed that, okay, my mum is gone and I was devastated, but I'm the kind of person that's going to go out there and prove to everyone how strong I am but it's far greater than that.

"I have a new-found respect for people that do come back, like Miles Tunnicliff, who came out and won two weeks after his mother passed away.

"I thought it was impressive, but now I think it's a lot more impressive to deal with what had been going through his mind and to win straight after is incredible."

However, he is looking to sign off a difficult season in positive fashion at St Andrews and acknowledges he is relishing the chance to return as defending champion.

"It's obviously nice to come back here and defend," he told Sky Sports News. "Home of golf, it's a wonderful field whether you're defending or not so to be coming here as the winner from last year - the past champion - is great."