A stalwart of The European Tour since 1991, the Ulsterman is no stranger to firsts. In the 1999 Smurfit European Open he became the first player on The European Tour to shoot 60 for a second time, having achieved it first in the 1992 European Monte Carlo Open, and in 2001 he became the first Irishman to win on home soil since John O’Leary in 1982, when he captured the Smurfit European Open.

In 2002 Darren Clarke became the first player to win the English Open three times and in 2003 became the first player outside Tiger Woods to capture more than one World Golf Championship title. In the past two years, however, his time has been split between the golf course and caring for wife Heather, who finally lost her brave battle against cancer in August 2006. Three weeks later, after informing Ryder Cup Captain Ian Woosnam he was available for selection, he was picked as one of the wild cards for The K Club and in an emotionally charged week produced a superb performance, winning all three of his matches.

Prompted the public to vote him BBC Sports Personality of the Year in December. A dedicated worker for charity, he organised a special Pro-Am at Portmarnock in September 1998 in aid of the victims of the Omagh bombing tragedy and set up his own Darren Clarke Foundation, which not only helps further the development of junior golf in Ireland, but also now raises money for Breast Cancer Awareness.