I have to get going, don’t I? My results have been poor this season. Missed cuts in my past two tournaments in the United States and a withdrawal from the one before that because of an injured back is not what I expect of myself now I am the European No 1. I have slipped to eleventh in the world rankings, too. It is time that I started playing good golf again. Now I am back in England for two weeks and competing in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth next week, I have the chance to make amends.

When Kate, my wife, and I flew from Miami on Sunday night, I knew Sergio GarcÍa was in a play-off in The Players Championship and I heard about his great victory when we landed. Unfortunately, we had very little time between arriving in Miami from Orlando and boarding our plane to London and our luggage didn’t make it to Heathrow. All five of our bags went to Glasgow. No, we didn’t come in to Terminal 5.

I am a lot happier about my back than I was a week ago. I went to see a biomechanic in Orlando with some knowledge of golf, but he is by no means a golf specialist. This meant that he could examine how my body worked with no preconceived ideas. He came up with some interesting observations. He said that I was very tight in my hamstrings, in my glute muscles and lower back and recommended a lot more stretching. I am hoping that if I do more of that and a little less strength training then I will be able to manage my back.

I will have to change my training programme slightly. Last year I treasured my practice time because my back meant I could not do it very much. This year I have practised more because I thought I was healthier. But now I am not sure. I have to learn that less is more.

I have a new caddie, Mark Fulcher, or “Fooch”. When Mick Doran, his predecessor, and I sat down for a little chat 12 days ago we decided mutually that it wasn’t working for us. We have had an up and down relationship over the years. In 2002 I won four times with Mick, but in 2003 we were not enjoying working with one another. It was a difficult time. We had both lost our dads and he had also lost his sister.

This time, if I am honest, it had not been working well all year and my results brought it to a head. I am hard on myself and harder to work for and I was asking him to do a job that he wasn’t comfortable doing. We listened to one another and we parted as friends. There is no shame on either side. He has come back to England, too, but before he went he recommended Fooch to me.

Fooch has been around for a long time. He worked on the women’s tour for a while and had been with Stephen Leaney before he started working for me. I am awfully determined, I never give up. So Fooch had to hang in there last week with me at Sawgrass. I enjoyed myself, even though I was playing poorly. The more positive I stay, the quicker I can turn things round.

I want my caddie to have self-confidence, to care for me, to share my burden. He must be reliable. Caddying is not rocket science. I need someone I can trust under pressure. I play my best golf when I am relaxed, so Fooch’s job is to keep me light-hearted. He will help me to have fun on the course. We talk quite a lot. I like football and he is an Arsenal fan. Our politics are similar. We talk about the US primaries and British politics. His dad was a policeman and supported Margaret Thatcher because she doubled police pay. I understand where Fooch is coming from. Now it looks like David Cameron will get in.

I had a meeting in London yesterday before driving up to Royal Birkdale to start my preparations for the Open. Today will be all golf and Fooch will be there, as will Nick Bradley, my coach. There won’t be any messing around. I shall play Royal Birkdale again tomorrow and on Friday.

I am looking forward to seeing the course again. What happened in 1998, when I finished fourth as an amateur, is all rather a blur now and I am curious to see how it has changed. I have only been back there once, when I played a Challenge Tour event at Formby Hall a few miles away. I can’t picture the holes easily any more. It is important to learn the course so that I am comfortable when we go there in July, but it is also important that I get my reminiscences out of the way.

Then it’s Wentworth next week. It’s a great course, with a lot to like about it. I’ve been going there since I was 8, when I would have a packet of sandwiches, a can of Coke and walk around all day. I played a junior tournament there when I was 14.

I have dreamt of winning the PGA since I was a kid. It’s something that I want on my résumé.