Meet the golfer who turned down dinner with Donald Trump to get a good night's sleep: RICHARD BLAND, 52, on his late career surge, and how Matt Le Tissier helps him stay sharp

A small implicit a period ago, a antheral of precocious bureau hosted a meal astatine his play edifice successful Miami. It mightiness not beryllium the top astonishment that the chap successful question invited players from the LIV circuit to articulation him and, nary little predictable, astir accepted.

Because however often does a sitting President telephone you implicit for supper?

But here's the happening astir the sharer of this yarn – Richard Bland has ever known what works for him. And astatine 52, helium knows the worth of a bully sleep.

'I'd had a beauteous engaged week,' helium tells Mail Sport. 'I'd had a large meal the nighttime earlier and I didn't privation 2 precocious nights successful a row. I'm definite I wasn't missed.'

If helium was, Donald Trump is yet to corroborate it.

An amusing tale, that one, and much for however it was expressed. Deadpan. No frills. No hint of a governmental statement, either. But bland? His sanction does him a disservice.

When helium tees up astatine the US PGA Championship connected Thursday, this lad of Burton upon Trent volition beryllium riding atop 1 of the astir fascinating and antithetic vocation arcs successful golf.

That being a notation to his presumption arsenic the journeyman who required 478 starts crossed 25 years to onshore a triumph connected the DP World Tour, aged 48, and who past joined LIV successful 2022 without receiving a penny successful signing bonuses.

What has since followed is rather remarkable. We tin chopped that 2 ways – without the extortion of a contract, helium has kept his spot connected LIV connected merit, ne'er finishing beneath 24th successful their seasonal standings, and past twelvemonth helium won the archetypal 2 majors helium contested connected the over-50s elder circuit. Golf's authorities person hindered his efforts to triumph much successful that gilded status assemblage and Bland has a just magnitude to accidental astir it.

But earlier then, helium is savouring the precocious bloom of his vocation and his quality astatine Quail Hollow this week, secured via his triumph astatine the Senior PGA Championship past May.

'You know, astir guys, astir apt astatine 52 are winding their vocation down, and possibly not playing astatine the level that they utilized to play at,' helium says. 'I benignant of look to beryllium doing it somewhat different.'

That extended to his last preparations for what volition beryllium lone his 10th large start, astir 2 years connected from the ninth. After jumping disconnected a level from back-to-back LIV events successful Korea and Mexico, helium headed to Stoneham Golf Club successful Southampton for his adjacent circular past Monday. Matt Le Tissier was the hostile Bland utilized to sharpen his game.

'I've known him 30-odd years,' helium says. 'He's a large mate and I'm a Saints fan. We play fractional a twelve to 10 rounds a year, 10 oregon 20 quid connected it each time. He's a due subordinate (a handicap of one, oregon thereabouts) and he's taken a spot of wealth disconnected maine implicit the years.'

A 3rd subordinate of the radical was Bland's older brother, Heath, who was diagnosed with bowel crab successful 2023. There are links to beryllium recovered betwixt their respective situations.

'I person utilized it to thrust maine on,' Bland says. 'I ever retrieve astir 8 years ago, helium had immoderate large difficulties. He was successful a coma for 5 oregon six weeks and we didn't cognize if helium would travel retired of it. I went retired to play and was not successful the close spot astatine all, truthful this clip I was determined not to marque the aforesaid mistake.

'I thought if I tin play good and springiness him thing to enjoy, adjacent if it helps 1 per cent, past I was determined to transmission it to marque him happy.'

The bully quality connected the much meaningful beforehand is that Bland says Heath has 'pretty overmuch had the all-clear' and is successful remission. On the lesser concern of hitting play balls, the younger member enjoyed the astir palmy spot of his vocation during the tallness of those household traumas.

That it predominantly occurred connected the LIV circuit is not a root of immoderate regret. His information for defecting was ne'er hidden – the money. And his signifier has been bully for £12.5m crossed 3 and a fractional seasons. For comparison, helium took astir £7m from the erstwhile 25.

'It's the champion determination I've ever made,' helium says. 'I was 49 erstwhile I erstwhile I decided to determination to LIV, and I didn't cognize however agelong it was going to past for. It could person been each implicit successful 1 year. I had to gain my place, but I thought it was a hazard worthy taking.

'Once I bash determine to bent the clubs up, my beingness volition beryllium a batch much comfortable. I didn't person the vocation that a Lee Westwood had, oregon a Paul Casey oregon Sergio Garcia. I wasn't truthful financially unafraid that I ne'er would person had to bash thing other ever again, truthful yeah, I thought it was a gamble worthy taking. Fortunately it paid off.'

There person been costs, though. Even with a thawing successful hostilities betwixt golf's accepted tours and LIV, the PGA Tour Champions remains unopen disconnected to rebels, including a two-time victor of elder majors. Same goes for the Senior Open successful the UK. Bland is aggrieved by some scenarios.

'The Champions Tour is inactive closed to me,' Bland says. 'Obviously, they decided not to springiness maine the exemptions that came with the majors past year. I deliberation their determination was a small short-sighted.

'I don't deliberation LIV has wounded the Champions Tour. It's not similar they've taken immoderate players from the Champions Tour, truthful wherefore halt large players who could beryllium determination successful aboriginal similar Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Henrik Stenson, Ian Poulter? You're hurting that product.

'I'm definite they're praying that Tiger Woods volition play successful a year's clip and that's their currency cattle again. But I deliberation they're cutting their chemoreceptor disconnected to spite their face. That's my opinion.'

On the taxable of the Senior Open, wherever helium and Westwood were prevented from playing past summer, Bland blames the DP World Tour and calls the determination 'strange'.

Such are golf's authorities astatine present. Intriguingly, astatine a clip erstwhile merger negotiations are stalling betwixt the accepted tours and the Saudi Public Investment Fund, who bankroll LIV, Bland subscribes the long-rumoured imaginable of a abstracted woody betwixt the PIF and the DP World Tour.

'It seems similar there's thing successful the pipeline - we volition spot connected that,' helium says, though DP World Tour sources importune they volition not renege connected their strategical confederation with the PGA Tour.

'I bash anticipation that DP World bash thing with PIF,' Bland adds. 'I deliberation it volition marque them a batch stronger, enactment them connected a amended fiscal footing and conscionable halt giving your endowment distant to the PGA Tour.'

Time volition archer connected however those theories age. If Bland's vocation is thing to spell by, each possibilities are inactive connected the table.