Ryan Fox reflected on the difference a year has made for him after he went bogey-free in tough conditions on day two of the 2023 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship to head into the weekend firmly in contention.
The New Zealander enjoyed an outstanding campaign in 2022, claiming two DP World Tour titles and finishing second in the season-long Rankings behind Rory McIlroy.
And after firing a flawless 66 that contained six birdies at Yas Links Abu Dhabi on Friday to move to seven under par, Fox revealed it is not just his results which have improved, saying he feels like a better golfer now than he was 12 months ago.
He trails halfway co-leaders Guido Migliozzi and Francesco Molinari by three shots with two rounds remaining and was pleased with his day's work.
Fox said: "I just feel like I'm a much better golfer than I was at the start of last year and have got a fair bit more confidence in my game.
"I know that there's not as many weaknesses as there was a few years ago. Like yesterday, I hit it awful but I could rely on my short game and my putter, and I couldn't have done that in the past.
"It's nice to see everything turning in the right direction like that.
"Hopefully I can have a similar sort of year this year as I had last year, and I think it will be pretty hard to replicate that.
"It was really nice out there today. Hit a couple of scruffy shots but definitely felt a lot better.
"Yesterday, I feel like I probably shot 66, even though it was 71. I didn't play very well. It's nice to get a good low one out here this morning."
Swede Alexander Björk also managed to keep his card clean on day two, notching seven birdies in his 65 to sit one shot ahead of Fox in a tie for fourth.
His round sprang to life at the ninth as he reeled off five birdies in a row to surge into contention.
Björk, this week playing his first event since October following an injury, said: "I didn't start great.
"Felt a bit stiff in the morning. Had a bit of trouble hitting shots on the range, but I was trying to warm up and I hit a few good shots.
"Then I got on a good run with the putter. I holed a few quite good ones there, so it was nice to get the feeling and momentum going."
