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As an Englishman and an Italian fight it out for the biggest prize of them all - the Race to Dubai - over the course of the DP World Tour Championship this weekend, a Swede is eager to return and have a bit of fun in what was once his backyard.
Former Dubai resident Henrik Stenson, who missed out on last year's season-ending championship due to a rib injury sustained during a 'Superman' stunt during the WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai, was delighted to be back at the Earth Course of the Jumeirah Golf Estates.
"Yeah, it's nice to be back. I almost missed out due to injury this year, as well, so no, delighted to be able to come and play. Obviously, (it is) a place that I've got very good memories," Stenson said on Tuesday.
Indeed, the 42-year-old has fond memories, having won the event back-to-back in 2013 and 2014. The Swede is also a two-time winner of the Race to Dubai in 2013 and 2016.
It has been an average season for Stenson, who sits 40th in the Race to Dubai, and he said was just looking forward to enjoying the week.
"I guess my expectations will be a bit lower this year, not having played since The Ryder Cup and only done light practice this last week. You might say that we're not quite there yet, but we'll be here. We'll be out there having a bit of a fun week, anyway, and see what we can do," he said.
Stenson went down memory lane and picked out the 2013 victory as one of his favourites.
"Well, I was playing incredibly well in 2013. I had a chance to win both The Race to Dubai and the FedExCup in the same year, and I was in a good position. I was being chased by Ian Poulter, my friend and neighbour, and yeah, I just knew I had to play really well, and of course, if I could win the tournament, I knew things were going to be ending up the way I wanted. Yeah, I managed to do that. I played really, really solid," Stenson remembered.
Stenson admitted it wasn't the season he would've envisaged but said that the highlight was winning The Ryder Cup.
"Yeah, haven't played my best but hasn't been a poor year, either. I had a career-best fifth at Augusta and a sixth at the US Open. I'm really happy with the performances those weeks. Despite not bringing my A game, it was still strong performances. And I had a couple of good tournaments in the spring, as well. But then from the summer onwards with a bit of injury, it wasn't great.
"But the highlight of the year certainly is The Ryder Cup. I came in there with maybe not the best form and still managed to get three out of three points. Of course, I had a strong partner that helped me out in that. But yeah, I'm very happy to have played well at The Ryder Cup. It was a great week, and all in all, pretty pleased with the year, anyway," summed up Stenson.
james@khaleejtimes.com
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