THE ageing process is a funny old thing. When you were in your 20s you probably spent a lot of time worrying about turning 30 before you finally hit 40 and wish you’d spent less time worrying about turning 30 in the first place.

Goodness knows then what’s it’s like to be approaching 50. By all accounts, it’s quite good. Well, it is for the 48-year-old Paul Lawrie.

“When I get to 50 I feel could be a helluva senior,” said the 1999 Open champion has he looked ahead to the next chapter of his career in a couple of years’ time. “I feel I could do really well on the Senior Tour. I’m not going to do a Monty and say I’ll never play seniors golf.”

That smiling, nudge-and-wink comment cheerily directed at Colin Montgomerie recalled the time Monty dismissed the idea of the golden oldies circuit before changing his mind and going on to thrive among the over-50s.

For Lawrie, the chance to campaign on two golfing fronts remains highly appealing. The Senior Tour may offer a new competitive environment but the Aberdonian remains hopeful that he can still play to a high standard on the regular European Tour.

“A lot of guys in my era, when they got to 50 they were kind of done but I don’t feel I’m going to be in that category,” he added.

“I feel I’m still going to be competitive on the main tour and mix in a bit of seniors, as opposed to the other way round.”

Lawrie is injury-free and currently has a sizeable spring in his step. His recent victory in the South African circuit’s Dimension Data Pro-Am, in the company of his youngest son Michael, may not have been on a par with some of his other notable triumphs but don’t tell Lawrie that.

Anything that galvanises the spirit and fans the competitive flames can only be beneficial. “That (win) ranks way up there,” said Lawrie, whose win lifted him almost 200 places in the world rankings and earned him a place in the WGC Bridgestone later this season.

“I know it wasn’t a European Tour event, but when you’re playing with your loon, and it’s an event with a good field, you still get the same feelings.

“On the back nine I felt a bit of pressure. I hadn’t won in four years, so for me, a win’s a win. I’ve got the winning feeling again. For a while I wasn’t able to hit many more than 40 or 50 balls and I was struggling.

“Now I’m hitting 400 to 500 most mornings, five days a week. I feel ready to go. I wish there were a few more events I want to play in at this time of the year. You’ve got India or Malaysia but going away down to these places at 48 is not for me.”

Since claiming that success in South Africa, Lawrie has made a move which he hopes will be highly beneficial by signing up with Chubby Chandler’s ISM management group.

Chandler has considerable clout in the golfing world but away from the professional side of affairs, there is the personal touch which Lawrie has been seeking since the death of his former coach and confidant, Adam Hunter, in 2011.

“There were a few different reasons for going (to ISM),” he said. “I felt for a long time that I haven’t really had somebody who can put his arm round me and manage me as Adam used to do, and he’s been gone for a while.

“No matter how good a player you are or how long you’ve played, you need someone you can run things past. Someone you respect, someone who has been through it and done it. That person for me was always Adam. I ran things past him and he was there to give advice.

“That’s been the biggest thing that’s been missing, so I spoke to Chubby and he does that with Lee (Westwood) and Darren (Clarke). I spoke to Darren at the Ryder Cup and he said ‘for what you’re looking for there’s no one better’.

“I had opportunities to go to Chubby years ago and didn’t. I could have gone to Chubby straight after the Open. I wish I had. I just feel that I need that right now. “I need to be ready when I’m 50.”