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McDowell still possessed by Valderrama demons

Graeme McDowell found himself in a number of precarious positions at the Andalucia Masters © Getty Images

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Graeme McDowell has confessed he "threw in the towel" as he unravelled en route to finishing 54th of 54th at Valderrama last week, the Northern Irishman admitting he still feels "ashamed" after his game completely fell apart in Spain.

The Ulsterman arrived at the 1997 Ryder Cup course with hopes of defending his Andalucia Masters title. However, after consecutive 73s, last year's US Open champion saw his chances of retaining his trophy go up in smoke with closing rounds of 81 and 82.

After ending the tournament in last place (of those who survived the cut), on 25-over-par, McDowell said he has struggled to come to terms with his inexplicable loss of form, labelling his performance one of the most "embarrassing" he has delivered on a golf course.

Currently playing at the WGC-HSBC Championship in Shanghai, the 32-year-old says his trip to China was a long one, in more ways than one. "I had a long time to think about it coming over here," he told the Daily Telegraph. "It was one of the more embarrassing weekends I have ever had on a golf course.

"I threw the towel in a little bit. I didn't have a shot in the bag and I couldn't make a putt either. That is how I have been this year. There's an element of being ashamed of yourself, and an element of 'What am I going to do about it'?"

He added in the Guardian: "I started trying to hit some stupid shots from the trees, had a bit of an attitude - get me to China quickly so I can start at level par again."

Meanwhile, McDowell, who sits at six-under in Shanghai after two three-under rounds of 69, says he is happy to play second fiddle to new stablemate Rory McIlroy, who has joined his compatriot at the Dublin-based management company Horizon Sports.

"I happy to say I'm now No. 2, I don't mind at all," he said. "I'm happy to have Rory in the camp. Maybe I can slipstream my old friend, as I used to say a couple of years ago - a bit of friendly rivalry is definitely going to be a good thing."

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