Max Kieffer knows his impressive recent form on the European Tour will only add to the pressure on his shoulders in this week’s BMW International Open, but German golf’s rising star is ready to embrace expectations.
Kieffer has three top five finishes in his last five appearances, including a share of eighth place in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open Hosted by the Rory Foundation and tied third in the Nordea Masters.
He will celebrate his 25th birthday on Thursday by joining European Ryder Cup stars Thomas Bjørn and Victor Dubuisson for the first round of his home tournament at Golfclub München Eichenried – a marquee grouping that rewards his recent displays.
The Düsseldorf resident will be aiming to extend his flawless record on The European Tour in 2015, having made the cut in each of his previous 15 appearances, and he hopes the home support can inspire him to contend again.
“Maybe I do put a little bit more expectation on myself this week, but from the outside I definitely feel like there's more expectation,” he said. “I guess it's a good thing. You always try to improve and get better.
“Playing in front of the home fans can really help you a lot. It can give you that extra five, ten percent that you need. Max Kieffer
"But on the other hand, seeing Rory missing the cut in Ireland, it can also be quite tough because you have a lot of stuff to do in the week and not only focus on your game. So it's tough to find the right balance there, maybe.
“My mum and dad drove down with me and it's nice to see some old friends here that I have not seen for a while. There are a lot of German players that usually don't play every week on the Tour, who have a chance to play this week. So it's definitely nice to see more people that I grew up with.”
Martin Kaymer was the last German to win the BMW International Open in 2008, and Kieffer recognises the importance of having home-grown players at the top of the leaderboard.
“For the whole tournament it would be nice if one of the German players could do well, and then obviously there's a bit more interest from the people who are maybe not so much into golf,” he said. “If a German guy plays well here, they will probably come out and watch. So it would be just nice for the whole tournament, and for golf in Germany, if one of the German guys does well, definitely.”
Another German hoping to be inspired by familiar surroundings is Stephan Jäger, who returns to his home course after making his debut in the US Open at Chambers Bay last week.
The 26 year old is based in Tennessee after attended both high school and college in America, but he grew up playing Golfclub München Eichenried and his parents still live 800metres from this week’s host venue.
“I'm always happy coming home,” he said. “The streets look like German and the people look German and the food is German. I love it, I really do. I miss a lot of that during the year, too. So I get it all out of the way this week and for Christmas. I will always be a German at heart and I think that's never going to change. I think that's a thing that will always be in there. My family is close and my sister still lives here. I will always have German ties and that will never go away.
“You have to enjoy every second of it and you've got to make the best of it. Hopefully I'll play well and get in contention and it will be fantastic for the people watching.”
