Graeme McDowell at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in January. Picture Fran Caffrey/www.golffile.ie.What goes up must come down. It’s a law of physics and Graeme McDowell knew that dealing with his US Open win and his incredible 2010 campaign would not be easy.

He heard New Zealander Michael Campbell compare the aftermath of his first major win to the dangers faced by a climber who’s just conquered Everest.

“Nobody teaches you to climb down again,” said Campbell, who won the US Open in 2005 before slithering as low as 795th in the world. “People die coming down. When you make it your goal in life, climbing Everest or winning a major, nothing prepares you for what’s at the other end.”

McDowell is no Michael Campbell but he appears to be paying the price for his incredible but ultimately draining 2010 season. Whatever about the helter-skelter of media and sponsorship commitments, the body can only take so much before the mind starts to suffer.