McGinley refuses to return to earth for links reality check

Ireland's Ryder Cup hero still in a state of euphoria as Belfry victors resume individual careers with three-course pro-am tournament

From the sublime to the ridiculous, or the Dunhill Links Championship. Nine of the victorious European Ryder Cup team have travelled north for this pro-am event over three courses. The Old Course at St Andrews, Carnoustie or Kingsbarns, it hardly matters. Paul McGinley has not yet arrived back from cloud nine.

"I want to keep the happiness and the joy going," said the Irishman who holed the winning putt at The Belfry. "It is not every week that you win the Ryder Cup and I don't want a reality check. It's just so special. I can't tell you how happy I feel. It's not a personal happiness. It's a happiness for everybody.

"It has been a whirlwind of excitement and pleasure and adrenalin. And happiness. It seems like everybody in the whole world feels it, whether it be the bellboy in the hotel or somebody on the course this morning, it's just been fantastic. The sheer volume of the congratulations, the sheer joy of everyone, that's what comes across strongly. Every single person I meet feels like they won the Cup.

"I feel blessed that it was actually me. I feel I cheated a little bit. I was fortunate that I had the glory of holing the winning putt but it was so much a team effort and I don't want anybody to lose sight of that. If I had done my job better, like Phillip Price, someone else would have got the glory."

Home advantage proved crucial in the end as McGinley revealed he had exactly the same putt on the 18th green in the Benson and Hedges International at The Belfry last year.

"I had holed it and so I knew the line," he said. "My caddie said to me, and he could not have said a better thing: 'You know this line. It's a ball outside the left. Remember last year?' He kept repeating that four or five times. I knew the line so I didn't need to take too long. It was a case of keeping it simple. The more I looked at it the more I might have seen a spike mark or a heel print and the more difficult it would have been.

"I was extremely nervous. I was apprehensive. I knew what it meant. Every emotion was at its most intense: nervousness, excitement, adrenalin, wanting to do it so badly, and the fear of missing.

"But I stuck to my routine. Two looks at the hole and as I hit it I stayed down for a second or two. What a time to hit the best putt of your life. It came off perfect, right off the middle of the putter, and went into the middle of the hole. As I looked up the ball was a foot from the hole and when it was six inches away it looked right in the middle, perfect pace, couldn't miss.

"I can't describe that feeling except to say it was like a champagne bottle. You shake it and shake it and shake it and that's how it felt inside until everything exploded. That's when I did the penguin jumps. I was shouting: 'Yes, yes, we did it, we did it'. It seemed like forever before the guys ran over to me, that's how much I was in the moment."

Of the celebrations on Sunday night, McGinley said: "My outstanding memory was being in the main bar of the hotel. The minute we walked in the place erupted. Lee Westwood introduced all the players. You could not repeat it, the language he used for each player but it was just so funny. I have never laughed so much or sang so much. It wasn't drink because I made sure I did not get drunk because I wanted to savour every moment."

Price, who beat Phil Mickelson, is to attempt to earn his US Tour card for next season but has to play in all three stages of the Qualifying School, starting later this month.

"Even if I only play for one year I want to go and see what it is like," said the Welshman. "I have played a bit over there and I would love to go for a year. I might like it, I might hate it. I am not looking to emigrate. We don't have a big family at the moment so this is the best time to experiment and see what it is like."

Bernhard Langer, Sergio Garcia and Jesper Parnevik are the three Europe team members missing for a tournament that will be worth a cool £500,000 to the winner and could go a long way to deciding who wins the Order of Merit.

South Africa's Retief Goosen holds a slender advantage over his countryman Ernie Els at the top of the money list. Both are in the field of 168 professionals who will have the pleasure of playing with an amateur for three rounds before a cut is made for the final round to be held at St Andrews.