They span the breadth of the highest level of professional golf, from major winner to serial Friday night homebird. The 13 Irish golfers who made their way onto the European Tour this season have wildly varying stories to tell, whether it's Graeme McDowell's newly-upholstered seat at the top table of world golf or Gareth Maybin's quest for that first win or Paul McGinley's search for the thread that will bring him back to challenge again. Irish golfers won five tournaments this past year – not a patch on the eight (including two majors) that 2008 brought but still a fine return. As the season winds down with seven qualified for the Dubai World Championship (second highest total after England) and Shane Lowry just one spot away, these are the stories of their year.

1. Graeme McDowell

World ranking 10 (up 41 places)

Season's earnings €2,712,239

Highlights Won US Open, Andalucia Masters, Wales Open, Ryder Cup, Rose Of Tralee...

Hard to believe he was scratching around for form this time last year, his fifth place at the Singapore Open the only time he threatened a win all season. He stands today as the second-most-improved player in the world after Martin Kaymer and one of an elite band of names nobody else in the field wants to see on a final-day leaderboard. When he led after two rounds in Andalucia last Friday, you couldn't get better than 4-5 on him closing the deal. That's a pre-crash-Woodsian level of inevitability. His next year will be about finding out where the ceiling is. If there is one.

2. Rory McIlroy

World ranking 9 (up 8)

Season's earnings €2,243,879

Highlights Won Wells Fargo Championship, T3 British Open, T3 USPGA

We hold him to such a high standard now that a year in which he won for the first time in the US, turned in a couple of third places in majors, acquitted himself well in his first Ryder Cup win and moved into the world's top 10 still feels like a teensy bit of a disappointment. His 62 at Quail Hollow and 63 at St Andrews were as close to perfect as golf can get – light years removed from what all but a few of his peers have in them – that you long for him to do it all the time. His Friday 80 at St Andrews might turn out to be the most important round of his year. Has definitely made an effort not to give up so easily since then. A bragging-rights race between him and McDowell could raise both boats over the coming decade.

3. Pádraig Harrington

World ranking 19 (down 13)

Season's earnings €1,694,733

Highlights Won Johor Open, 2nd Irish Open, T3 CA Championship

Three missed cuts in the majors is a dog of a year any way you spin it. The win in Malaysia a few weeks back was both long overdue and completely necessary – it even came complete with the familiar neck injury scare mid-tournament. Everybody has their own theory as to what has happened to Harrington – from trying too hard to not caring enough. The only certainty is that speculation is pointless. Someday he will rack it again and he'll beat a quality field in a serious tournament, like he almost did in Killarney when not even playing particularly well. For now, it's good to see him arrest the slide.

4. Darren Clarke

World ranking 100 (up 9)

Season's earnings €820,890

Highlights 2nd Scottish Open, 2nd Jo'burg Open

A rebirth of sorts, prompted by a warming couple of weeks in mid-summer when he parlayed a win in the JP McManus pro-am in Adare into a second place in Loch Lomond later that week. That Edoardo Molinari was too good for him that day was no disgrace, as subsequent results from the Italian showed. He's kept at it ever since, picking up decent cheques most weeks and making his first cut in a US major since 2007. Comfortably into Dubai World Championship having missed out by less than €30,000 last year. The graph is on an upswing again – a win and a bit of momentum early next year could even get him into the Masters again.

5. Damien McGrane

World ranking 130 (up 46)

Season's earnings €736,583

Highlights 2nd Andalucia Masters, 7th Johnnie Walker Championship

Might come to regret last Sunday for quite a while unless there's the remedy of a win in his near future. Nobody denies that Valderrama on a Sunday afternoon is a tough place to hold onto a lead but to go from one ahead on the 16th tee to two behind in the clubhouse will be tough to get past for McGrane. It would have topped off a reasonable season too, one where he had a dozen top-20 finishes, half of them inside the top 10.

6. Peter Lawrie

World ranking 111 (up 62)

Season's earnings €711,805

Highlights 2nd Czech Open, 3rd Castello Masters, 6th Portugal Masters

One of his best ever years on tour, all it needed was the adornment of a win and it would have comfortably outstripped the rest. Came mighty close in the Czech Open in August, only to be denied by a Ryder Cup-chasing Peter Hanson in a play-off. Has never broken into the top 100 in the world rankings and hasn't played in a major since 2005. Going the right way about changing all that.

7. Gareth Maybin

World ranking 122 (up 3)

Season's earnings €709,640

Highlights 2nd Andalucia Masters, 2nd Ballantine's Championship

Like McGrane, last Sunday will sting for a while. No disgrace in being outstayed by a stamina horse like McDowell but bogeying the closing two holes for a 76 and losing by two shots in the end could weigh on a man's mind. Gets married soon though, so at least the biggest payday of his career will have come in handy. Improving all the time, just needs that first win and he'll be a made man.

8. Shane Lowry

World ranking 135 (up 43)

Season's earnings €492,528

Highlights 4th Abu Dhabi Championship, 7th Scottish Open

Currently hovering at just the wrong spot on the Race To Dubai list, he's one place and around €15,000 out of qualification for the Dubai World Championship. Big fortnight coming up, therefore. Finish well in either Hong Kong or Singapore or both and he'll finish his first full season in style. Nothing to be ashamed of so far either way. Has played in his first two majors and even went into the Sunday at St Andrews on the verge of the top 10 before sliding to a tie for 37th. Belongs on tour now and hasn't even needed to lean on the two-year exemption for support.

9. Michael Hoey

World ranking 320 (down 80)

Season's earnings €291,035

Highlights 7th Irish Open, 11th France Open

His season could easily have sunk under the weight of the virus that took him off tour for six weeks in the middle of the summer but he rescued himself with one good week in Killarney where seventh place earned him €90,000 and gave him breathing space for the rest of the year. Tumbled down the world rankings but will keep his card and live to fight another year.

10. Paul McGinley

World ranking 407 (down 195)

Season's earnings €155,610

Highlight 14th Irish Open

The slide continues for McGinley, whose season began with time out for knee surgery and never improved all that much thereafter. Only had one tournament all year where he looked happy with his game and even that wasn't good enough to scrape into the top 10 at the Irish Open. For the second year in a row, his most enjoyable week came at a tournament where he didn't pick up a club – his behind-the-scenes work at the Ryder Cup virtually nailing him down as a cert to be the first ever Irish captain sometime in the next few years. That's the future, though. Right now, he's just looking for his game. Would be in danger of losing his card but for the career earnings exemption.

11. Simon Thornton

World ranking 477

Season's earnings €116,954

Highlight 9th BMW International

His first year on tour was rough at times – 12 missed cuts in 22 tournaments tells its own tale. His big chance came in Munich at the BMW Championship where he went into the final day tied for second place. A 73 on Sunday dropped him to ninth however and he missed the cut in the lucrative France Open the following week. Came through the qualifying marathon last year, and will have to do so again this time around.

12. Colm Moriarty

World ranking 495

Season's earnings €75,558

Highlight 37th British Open

A year spent mostly on the Challenge Tour where he finished 43rd in the rankings. Held his own a couple of times on the main tour too, however, most notably at St Andrews where he beat a lot of stellar names to squeeze into the top 40. Like Thornton, he goes straight to the Q-School finals in December in Catalunya.

13. Gary Murphy

World ranking 745 (down 322)

Season's earnings €19,152

Highlights None

Nightmare season. Managed only seven rounds in the 60s all year and never two in the same week. Biggest cheque was €5,800 for 43rd place in the South African Open. Faces a 10-round endurance test through two stages of qualifying in Spain over the coming month if he's to win back his card for next year.

mclerkin@tribune.ie