You would think Lee Westwood has seen it all in his many years on the European Tour but the Englishman is breaking new ground this week at the ISPS HANDA World Super 6 Perth.
Westwood is playing in his 25th season on Tour with 23 wins from 515 appearances helping make him World Number One, Europe's top player twice and bringing him seven Ryder Cup wins from ten times representing his continent.
But he has never played golf like this before, with 54 holes of stroke play followed by five rounds of match play to find a winner as the innovative event returns to Lake Karrinyup Country Club for the second year.
With Westwood's prowess in both formats of the game unquestionable, he arrives in Western Australia as one of the favourites and is raring to get a new challenge under way.
"It's just a great place to come and play, especially this time of year when the weather's miserable at home," he said.
"I heard a lot about the format as well, sounds like an interesting format. I do well at stroke play and match play, so it's nice to see somebody use their initiative and combine the two. I watched a little bit on TV last year and it looks like an exciting format.
"Lake Karrinyup's a great golf course. I like the old traditional-style golf courses, tree-lined and great bunkering and lovely greens. Just seems a perfect fit.
"It seems like quite a fast format this week, I think it's a format where you've got to adopt a more aggressive approach. It's no good edging your way in.
"I think you've got to come out as fast as you can and obviously make the cut on Friday night, but then getting in that top 24, so you might as well be aggressive and go for everything.
"I like the quickness of the six-hole match play, that's once again fast and furious and you want to get off to a fast start in that, too, so I'll try and make that my approach.
"It's just so fast and furious, six holes, that you probably won't have that much time to think. So it's just a case of coming out and hitting good shots early on and making putts and getting up and getting the momentum more than anything."
I do well at stroke play and match play, so it's nice to see somebody use their initiative and combine the two - Lee Westwood
Westwood narrowly missed the cut in Abu Dhabi and Dubai but finished in a tie for 11th at last week's Maybank Championship, with a stunning 62 on Friday putting him right in contention for European Tour win number 24.
None of those victories have yet come in Major Championships but 44 year old Westwood feels he can still contend for the game's very biggest prizes.
"I've started to play better as the three weeks and four weeks have gone on," he said. "I played well last week. I shot ten under just purely hitting it close on Friday, which is my best round for quite some time.
"I'm looking forward to playing this week and trying to improve on that result.
"I still feel fit and strong, I still hit it far enough to contend in tournaments, so there's no reason why [he cannot win a Major].
"I'm not in the Masters yet, unfortunately, or the US Open, but I'm in the Open Championship and PGA this year. So I've been trying to get back in the top 50 of the world to get in the other two Major Championships because obviously if you're not in, you can't win them.
"I finished second, what, two Masters ago, so still feel like I've got a chance."
