Dutchman Floris De Vries has put his nightmare rookie season on The European Tour firmly behind him and is determined to earn another shot at the big time this year.
Having graduated from the Challenge Tour in fourth place in the 2010 Rankings, the 22 year old had high expectations for 2011, but his season was plagued by injury and he finished 171st in The Race to Dubai.
He missed out on a card at the Qualifying School in December, and after a period of soul searching during the winter, when he admits he lost his way, De Vries is fit and raring to go on the Challenge Tour again.
He was tied tenth in the Barclays Kenya Open a fortnight ago and tied 20th in the Pacific Rubiales Colombia Classic in March, his first Challenge Tour event of the season, and a healthier lifestyle is starting to pay off.
“After missing out at the Q School, I was partying, drinking and eating badly – basically doing everything that’s not allowed,” said De Vries, who has one Challenge Tour title to his name, the 2010 Mugello Tuscany Open. “I gained weight and didn’t play well in Dubai (Omega Dubai Desert Classic) and India (Avantha Masters) at the start of the year, the two European Tour events I got in through my medical exemption.
“I was feeling terrible – I was playing badly and generally wasn’t in good shape. So I started eating healthily and working out again, and I lost eight kilos. Since then I’ve felt a lot better. One of my big goals for this year is to be healthier. I underestimated the power of living healthily and eating well. I feel a lot sharper and fitter than ever before.”
Although it was largely a frustrating campaign last year, De Vries showed glimpses of his potential, coming 13th in the Joburg Open in January 2011 and qualifying for The Open Championship, where he made the cut and finished tied 44th.
“I started the year really well and after coming from the Challenge Tour you have a lot of confidence,” he said. “You think you can beat the big boys easily. I’d finished fourth in the Rankings and was on a high. I was really focused and playing nicely.
“But then after the good start, I had a small injury and then it was all over. It was such bad luck. There was not one particular point when I felt an injury happened; my knee just gradually became more and more swollen. I went to the doctor who diagnosed inflammation of the bursae.
“I had an injection, but from that some bacteria got into my knee and it got infected. That cost me two and a half months out. I came back for about six weeks then I got a rib injury which meant another six weeks out.
“With the knee problem, I could hit balls but I couldn’t walk, so I’d just practise for an hour then have my leg up for the rest of the day. With the rib injury I couldn’t swing, not even chipping. When you’re injured like that you don’t even want to play golf, you just want to stay away because you know you can’t compete.
“It was very frustrating, especially as I had to stop just before the great tournaments like the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. Since I was a little kid I’ve wanted to play those events, and to finally get there and have to miss out was horrible. I’ve never played so little golf in my life as last year.”
Returning from one injury would have been hard enough, but after the second one De Vries admits he felt very rusty and out of touch in the highly competitive environment of The European Tour.
However, it is in an environment he is desperate to return to, and is confident he can do it at the first time of asking.
“After my knee healed I was okay and I felt good,” he said. “I played well at The Open and played really well in the BMW Italian Open (presented by CartaSi), but then I missed a couple of cuts and then got injured again. After the rib injury I felt so out of it. I’d lost focus and I didn’t practise my short game enough which was really bad. I missed a lot of cuts by one or two shots just from not getting up and down enough.
“It should have been a good year, but it wasn’t. But I feel very comfortable being back on the Challenge Tour. When I played a practice round in Kenya I remembered being there two years ago, and I feel a much better player than back then. I’m more confident and play a lot better. I have learned a lot from my experience on The European Tour. The mind-set is very different – everybody is so focused on themselves.
“So I’m feeling good and confident and I would be very surprised if I don’t get my card back through the Challenge Tour or the Qualifying School this year. Something will have gone very wrong if that doesn’t happen. I just hope i don’t have any more bad luck with injuries.”
