Rasmus Højgaard is hoping to build on his encouraging return to action last week as he continues his comeback from a long break at the Korea Championship Presented by Genesis.
The Dane's early part of the season was affected by a shoulder injury that caused him to miss the Hero Cup but he still managed to record a top ten in Ras Al Khaimah in February before taking a long break, teeing it back up at the ISPS HANDA - CHAMPIONSHIP.
A tie for 16th represented a positive return after ten weeks off, and Højgaard is hopeful he can do better still this week as he gets back into the swing of things at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea.
"I didn't have too high expectations going into the week but there was a lot of good stuff in there and there's a lot of things I can improve on," he said of his week in Japan.
"It's a very nice start, I really enjoyed being back out playing so hopefully I can improve on a few of the mistakes.
"I'm just going to be a bit more sharp in my approach and wedge play, it seems like that was not as steady last week and it put me in some difficult situations so if I can improve that a little bit and make it a bit more stress-free that would be very good.
"I've been looking forward to coming here for a while now and so far it's been a very good experience."
Højgaard had the experience of playing with Ernie Els last week, with the four-time Major Champion beating him by one shot on Friday with a 66.
At 53, Els has been a professional for 11 more years than 22-year-old Højgaard has been alive, and the three-time DP World Tour winner believes that Els' ability to mix it with the young guns shows not only his quality but one of the great strengths of the game of golf.
"It was very cool," he said. "He's obviously one of the greats of the game so it was very cool to watch him play but also to chat with him a little bit and listen to some good stories, I really enjoyed it.
"It tells you that he's still a very, very good player. He's just an incredible golfer, you can see why he was so good back in the day and still is good and that's the fun part of the game: some days you can shoot the lights out and the next day you can struggle a lot. I guess that's why we love the game."
After Japan became the 51st different country to host a DP World Tour event last week, the Tour is spending its second consecutive week in the Far East as South Korea makes a return to the schedule.
Robert MacIntyre registered his second consecutive top ten of the season last time out – either side of a five-week competitive break – and he was pleased with the impact of his new plan to stay calm in round.
“This season so far, I feel like I have been good tee to green,” he said.
“The putter has just been a bit cold. I am just trying to not get too emotional over it.
“Whatever happens, happens. Just hit the ball, deal with it, and hit it again. That is what I am trying to do as good as I can. Last week it worked.”
Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea is a former Presidents Cup venue and Scot MacIntyre is looking forward to the challenge of testing his game at such a high-class venue.
“I actually watched a bit of the Presidents Cup [in 2015] here. I remember the finish, I think it was Bill Haas who claimed the winning point," he said.
“These golf courses are good. Jack Nicklaus doesn’t put his name to golf courses unless it is good. The clubhouse is stunning, so you know it is going to be a good venue.”
