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Bjørn excited for Kenya return
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Bjørn excited for Kenya return

Thomas Bjørn is glad to be back in Kenya 24 years after his previous competitive appearance in the country.

The former Ryder Cup Captain is in action at this week's Magical Kenya Open presented by Absa, a tournament in which he finished in a tie for second in 1995.

Thomas Bjorn

Bjørn has fond memories of the place and revealed the country has a special meaning to people from his homeland, due to the Danish author Karen Blixen and her book 'Out of Africa', which recalls her years living in Kenya.

"I have good memories of 1995 coming here," Bjørn said at his pre-tournament press conference in Nairobi.

"I always felt like I wanted to come back but it never really happened. Now there was an opportunity and I'm glad to be here. I'm looking forward to the week.

"There's always been that kind of relationship for Danes with this place." - Thomas Bjorn

"As a Dane coming here it's always a bit interesting, the name of the place, the heritage of Karen Blixen here.

"When I grew up in Denmark, going to the Karen Blixen museum in Copenhagen and seeing all those things, there's always been that kind of relationship for Danes with this place, which is quite interesting. It's not something a lot of people think about but for us when we come here we certainly feel a connection to the place.

"When you come here as a 24-year-old you probably don't think so much about those things and when you come here as a 48-year-old you probably realise that there's more to life than just playing in a golf tournaments. Kenya has so much to offer. I'm happy to be here."

Bjørn goes into the week on the back of a top-50 finish in the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.

And the 48-year-old is hopeful this week's setup will play to his strengths.

Thomas Bjorn plays a shot on the driving range

He said: "I played poorly early in the week last week and improved as the week progressed.

"When you come to a golf course like this, it's tight, small greens, more old-style golf, when you're an older guy you get a little bit of a smile on your face because you think if you do the right things and you get going in the right sort of way these are the type of courses you have a chance on.

"You don't need to hit it 340. You need to think your way around the golf course, you've got to play the golf course in front of you and not just hit it hard.

"That gives you a little bit of a smile and a little bit of hope but there's a strong field of players here and you've got to play good golf. You can't go out and just think cos the course suits you it'll come your way.

"I'm looking forward to teeing off on Thursday and we'll have fun with it."

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