Thorbjørn Olesen arrived at the Nordea Masters as a man in form but insisted he was not the favourite as he prepared for what could be a pivotal week in his season.
The Dane has five top 15s in his last eight starts, including a Rolex Series victory at the Italian Open and good finishes at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open hosted by the Rory Foundation, the Open Championship and the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
Olesen is the highest-ranked player in the field at Hills Golf Club and a victory this week would not only represent a first multiple-winning season for the 28 year old but could also go a long way to securing his place on the Ryder Cup Team.
He is currently on the outside looking in at sixth on the European and tenth on the World Points List but with three European Tour events to go until the Team is finalised and Thomas Bjørn makes his four Captain's Picks, Olesen admits it is difficult not to think about Le Golf National.
"I've got the question a lot the last month or so," he said. "I'm trying not to think about it at all. That's obviously difficult but I'm really trying to put my head down and concentrate on my game.
"To be fair it's been pretty easy because the tournaments have been so big, with the Majors and Rolex Series events I want to do well in. Obviously I want to win a Major at some point in my career, it's my biggest goal.
"In that way it's been a bit easier to keep the Ryder Cup away but it is difficult. I would love to be in Paris, to play for Europe. I can only go out every day and try to play good golf and show that I'm good enough for the team. That's all I can do.
"Thomas and I are great friends. I don't think that makes it better for me, it might make it worse. I would love to get in that team, in the top eight, that's my goal.
"I haven't talked to Thomas about the Ryder Cup the last four or five months. Last year we spoke a bit about it as we're good friends and it's massive for him as Captain with so much to do, but we haven't spoken about it the last months."
Turning his attention to this week, Olesen has a good record in this event, finishing fourth last season and in 2009.
I'm really trying to put my head down and concentrate on my game - Thorbjørn Olesen
That plus his recent impressive play has made him many people's favourite this week but with two-time Major Championship winner and former World Number One Martin Kaymer in the field, Olesen is taking nothing for granted.
"For me, it's an iconic event," he said. "Growing up and being from Denmark it's a tournament that I've always watched on TV, a lot of big players have won and contended here. It was also my first European Tour event, so it's a special week for me and a tournament that I would love to do well in.
"I feel like I've worked a lot on my game, obviously played some good golf. It's been very busy, I've played a lot of weeks but that's a good thing because I feel like my game is good. Just playing golf is a good thing.
"There are a lot of good players in this field. Obviously I've had a lot of good weeks the last three months but there's a guy here who has won a couple of Majors and I'm guessing ten or 15 tournaments. I would say he's more favourite than I am but with the form I've had and how I love playing in Sweden, I would put myself among the favourites."
