Golf's hair apparent

The madness is in more than just the hair. His friend Casey describes him as a "nutcase" who is "a good guy to hang around when you're looking for fun".

One of the people Poulter has fun with is the former Arsenal player Lee Dixon, who lives nearby. "He's a headcase, like me," he said. "We race cars on a track whenever we can. We're adrenaline junkies."

Poulter's exuberance even makes it onto the golf course, with his habit of sticking his tongue out and making Gazza-like faces whenever he plays a good shot.

He uses street slang to describe his roots and prides himself on being a "Hertfordshire homeboy - straight outta Stevenage".

Even as a three-year-old, Ian Poulter's sporting talent was obvious. From the moment he dribbled a ball past a team of footballers twice his age, his mother Theresa Wall, 50, knew her son was a prodigy.

But his talent for football was nothing compared to his ability with a golf club.

Mrs Wall, a retail manager, said: "Ian had to be better than everybody else. He would play every day if it was possible." He took up golf at four, when his father Terry, a keen amateur, cut down a set of clubs and soon he was "beating the pants off everybody".

At Barclay secondary school, Stevenage, says Poulter, "the kids said I was barking mad. They thought golf was a poncey sport. A game for toffs. Look who's laughing now."

Although he was offered trials with Tottenham Hotspur, Ian focused on golf and at 16 achieved his first big success in a tournament at Welwyn Garden City.

He left school and started working as a professional at Leighton Buzzard golf club, supplementing his income by selling sausage rolls. In 2000, he was named Rookie of the Year and went on to win the Italian Open. He won titles in 2001 and 2002 and claimed the Wales Open in June before beating Montgomerie in Denmark by a stroke.

His obsession with golf was matched by a love of fashion, in particular designer clothes and sharp haircuts.

Mrs Wall, a former hairdresser, said: "He always wanted to look good. His shorts were always rolled up higher than the other boys' because he thought they looked cool. He and his brother always experimented with hairstyles and had extensions and highlights."

His red streaks were inspired by Arsenal's FA Cup victory over Southampton (and owe more than a little to Freddie Ljungberg).

Mrs Wall said: "He got the mickey taken a bit but he was always up for a laugh. His wife Katie thought it was hilarious and it's just Ian's character to be so extrovert."