Home favourite Thorbjørn Olesen was in reflective mood as he returned to the Made in Denmark presented by FREJA at Himmerland Golf & Spa Resort.
Olesen will look back at this event with fond memories after the Dane secured his place in the 2018 Ryder Cup Team in his homeland last September, despite finishing outside the top seven which would have guaranteed his position in the European side.
However, Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick - who needed a win to deny Olesen - was three shots adrift and it was the 29-year-old who was celebrating at Silkeborg Ry Golf Club, despite ending eight strokes back from eventual winner Matt Wallace.
The event changed to its current May date following the global schedule shake-up, and has also returned to the Himmerland Golf & Spa Resort venue, which hosted the first four editions of the tournament.
Looking back on last year's event, Olesen said: "It was probably one of the toughest weeks. A different pressure than normal because of The Ryder Cup. I think especially that first round on Thursday, I felt the pressure and then slowly got into it.
"It was a nice experience to learn that type of pressure I haven't felt before, so it was a good learning experience.
"I had some really good performances and played consistently, especially those three or four months leading up to The Ryder Cup. I was up there in the mix a lot of the time.
"It's been a slow start this year but I've felt like I've done some really good changes and hopefully that pays off soon."
Olesen is determined to become the first home winner in the event's six-year history and is a firm believer that there will be more Danish golfers on the European Tour in the near future.
"It's been great every year," he said. "The crowd has been amazing, so supporting. It definitely gives you an extra boost and it's a tournament that I really want to win. I'm really looking forward to it.
"There has been a lot of great talent coming through the national team, a lot of really good, young players that have done well in the amateur ranks so I'm sure in a few years' time we will see some really good players on Tour."
The 29-year-old only recently discovered that the Himmerland Golf & Spa Resort has a terrace named in his honour and he also pinpointed one aspect of his game he needs to improve on to be in contention this weekend.
He added: "I didn't actually know until last weekend so that's pretty cool and I'm sure some of my friends are going to hang out there and have a good time.
"One thing I haven't well done around here is putting and I'm usually a great putter. I haven't really got it going on these greens so that's something I've got to figure out this week if I want to win it."
