Lee Westwood returns to former coach

Lee Westwood has decided to return to the coach who first put him on the road to the top, Pete Cowen.

"There's been too much chopping and changing," said Andrew Chandler, Westwood's manager. "The time has come for Lee to re-commit to Pete, not just for a few weeks but for a good 18 months."

Westwood has turned to other coaches like Butch Harmon, David Leadbetter and Bob Torrance since the mid-Nineties, as his original belief in Cowen seemed to wane.

Chandler's feeling is that the relationship with Westwood will be back to where it was when the two started working together, with the coach having the player's total respect.

Now Harmon has his hands full with Tiger Woods, Adam Scott, Jose Maria Olazabal and Darren Clarke while Leadbetter is busy with Ernie Els and Charles Howell. Torrance tends to divide his time between his son, Sam, and Padraig Harrington.

Chandler has explained to a slightly wary Cowen that he has nothing to lose in taking Westwood on again at this stage. "If Lee should start to play better, he'll get much of the credit and, if he doesn't, no one's going to say it's Pete's fault," he said.

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