Tommy Fleetwood was delighted to be back on the DP World Tour as he prepared to make his Green Eagle Golf Courses debut at the 2022 Porsche European Open.
The Englishman has teed it up at this event twice before but this is his first time playing the Hamburg layout that has been host for the last four editions and always produced an English winner.
The two-time Ryder Cup star is now a truly international player, with fans all around the world, but he was delighted to be back on European soil, having played the opening two Rolex Series events at the start of 2022 before heading for a spell in the United States.
"I always enjoy coming back," he said. "It’s my home Tour and I get to see a lot of people I don’t see throughout the year. It’s lovely to come back.
“There’s so many faces and people that I grew up with from the time I turned pro. I love the continent and there’s just that familiarity and I enjoy coming back - the way the world of golf is at the moment sends us all over the world and different places.
"When we do get to come back, generally for me, I love competing and playing and seeing people I’ve spent so much of my professional career with. I always enjoy seeing them and catching up."
Remarkably, Fleetwood has not missed a cut in a regular DP World Tour event for almost four years but he arrives in Germany looking for his first victory since the 2019 Nedbank Golf Challenge hosted by Gary Player.
His renowned consistency would suggest he will fancy making yet another weekend but a fifth-placed finish in the recent US PGA Championship also gives the 31-year-old the belief he can challenge for DP World Tour title number six.
“I’m playing consistently," he said. "I’m always working hard on my game but that doesn’t mean you’re always getting it right. I’m very consistent and I’ve shown some positive performances. I’ve lacked top finishes, but top five in the PGA was a good start to that.
"Overall, I feel more comfortable and confident about where my game is now compared to six months to a year ago. Hopefully results will be a part of that and they’ll come.
"Every week feels like there’s less pressure on each week to get it right. You don’t try and force it and just have faith in what you’re doing. Hopefully performances come and confidence builds from there.
“You’ve got to hit a bunch of good golf shots and go from there. I always like to feel like my game should be able to get it round on most golf courses and make it fit.
"But on this course, a lot of long holes. It requires good ball-striking. The standard of golf is so high these days, so it’s a case of playing well or it’s not going to be anywhere near good enough.
"I feel good coming into it. I look forward to the challenge of the course and playing back on this Tour and we’ll see.”
