Joe Dean, one of the legends of the DP World Tour season, writes this week's player blog as he makes his debut at the HSBC Championship in Abu Dhabi.
Joe Dean was competing in the second round of the DP World Tour play-offs in Abu Dhabi on the day the qualifying school finals stage began. This time last year, he was in Q-school. From then to now, he's been delivering deliveries, undergoing hypnosis and finishing second, which has led to him gunning for dual memberships and a PGA Tour card, but it all started at INFINITUM, where Joe started his blog… …..
Fear, panic. Honestly, that was my first reaction last year when I made the last putt on the last hole in the final qualifying round. It had nothing to do with finances at first, but more to do with the fact that I was really having a hard time traveling. I earned my DP World Tour card and knew I had to do a lot of traveling. Really mixed feelings. Of course I'm happy. That’s what I’ve wanted to achieve my entire golf career.
From memory, I think I was originally meant to be at the season opener in South Africa, but when I realized how unorganized I was – the turnaround was so fast – and the reality of the cost it would incur, I decided it wasn't What a great idea. I could have self-funded myself to attend an event in South Africa, but there were too many reasons against going there. From there, I started looking for sponsorships and seeking help from a hypnotherapist, which eventually allowed me to travel with a healthy mindset and start attending events.
My origins in seeing a hypnotherapist can be traced back to when I placed at the top of the 2020 Pro Tour in 2023, thereby winning 12 free sessions. Without those treatments and working with Darren Hirst, I wouldn't be here. For me, traveling is very difficult, if not impossible. My fear of traveling dates back to 2014, when our family dog of 16 years had to be euthanized. On that day, the England team was in Portugal for a training camp. My parents thought it would be better to do it while I was away, but it almost created some kind of separation anxiety during the trip. I managed to keep it hidden until 2019 and my fiancée became my coping mechanism. As soon as I got to the airport, something triggered in me that I didn't know would trigger.
Just a few months ago I had a nervous breakdown during Q-school. I was in Stage 2, one of the rounds had been postponed, and my fiancée was scheduled to fly home early Monday morning to go back to work, which meant she couldn't stay and watch. I was mentally shattered and barely slept before the final round. I was in a good position going into the finals, but I didn't want to play well and just wanted to go home because she was gone. I fell into a very dark place again. My caddy, Max, was really helpful. I think I shot eight under that day, finished second, and then I had to figure out pretty quickly how I was going to handle the final stretch. Despite the rigors of Q-School, that week was a hell of a nightmare for me. It almost took away any expectations I had from golf.
If you ask anyone, I think they would say I'm not one to beat around the bush. I only played one day last season so I went into the first game in Qatar with no expectations, even though I wanted to advance. I know the DP World Tour provides a safety net for those with status, so if you're not making money, it doesn't mean you're putting yourself at risk of not doing well financially. Knowing I have a safety net relieves stress. When I went into that tournament in Qatar, I thought no one knew me and I had nothing to prove to anyone. I've only done one or two days of racing the past two years outside of Q-school, so I don't even have anything to prove to myself. It's a case of getting out there and seeing what happens.
After missing out on promotion in Qatar, I returned home. I've never been one to be overconfident or arrogant about anything. It's nice to be back home and back to some normalcy, really. When you go out on tour, you're treated like a very special person. That's awesome, but I think you get ahead of yourself pretty quickly. I tell my friends that if they see me getting arrogant, to bring me back to reality.
I've been working as a delivery driver for the last three, three and a half years, so it's just something that brings me back to normal. Now, after nine months or so of playing on tour, it's hard for me to go home and sit down and relax. I almost feel guilty about it. It's just a different way of living. If I still had time, I might do a shift here and there to remind myself where I was. A lot of people laugh at me because I only buy one yardage book, but at the end of the day, two yardage books are worth a whole shift. I don't necessarily need two yardage books, my caddy and I read the same yardage book, so half a day's work in the van doesn't equal the value of one yardage book. For some others it's well worth it, but I don't quite get it so I still can't convince myself to buy two yardage books!
When it comes to stories about work outside of being a professional golfer, I'm not alone. Some of the guys on the Challenge Tour might have a second income, and if you go to some of the smaller satellite tours, I can guarantee you probably half the guys will find another job, whether it's as a professional coach or something. Matt Baldwin talks about how he worked as a delivery driver for Amazon, something many people have done.
When I went to Kenya, things happened very quickly. I gained confidence from that performance and went from there. My highlight was the play-off at the KLM Open with Guido Migliozzi and Marcus Kinhult. Never in a million years did I think I would be in the play-offs. I was in my own bubble that whole day. The front nine didn't go as planned and to be honest, I just wanted to stay in the top 15, but then I made a few putts on the back nine. It's a bit surreal to be in the play-offs. You see them on tour and then when you get involved, it's a completely different story. The release of pressure feels incredible afterward, but it doesn't feel so special in the moment because you're still in the zone of focusing one shot at a time. Looking back, I tried my best and I don't wish I had done anything differently.
I arrived in Abu Dhabi feeling confident about the challenges of the next two weeks. I learned a lot when I played in these conditions on the Challenge Tour early in the season. This is a different type of golf required to play in Europe. This is what caught me off guard when I was in Qatar. But I did some research on Yas Links and knew what shot I needed, having played at Saadiyat earlier this year. It's four rounds, no eliminations, so money is guaranteed, which is pretty good. I will adopt a happy-go-lucky mentality. It seems like the harder I try to focus on playing good golf, the more things go backwards for me. Relax, have fun and embrace opportunity. This is the main thing. My fiancée Em is with me and I have friends coming to Dubai so let's have some fun. Even though it's your job, you have to cherish these moments.
It's great to see guys that you've seen win and compete on tour over the years like Pablo Larrazabal, Matt Wallace and Tommy Fleetwood. They are great. Dan Gavins is probably the major player I've seen and spent the most time with outside of tour life. Dan Brown and Andrew Wilson are also people I've known since I was a kid, so it's nice to have some people you know. I played with Angel Hidalgo when he was winning in Spain and immediately saw the talent he had in Spanish hands. That's awesome to see. While I probably spend most of my time around people I already know, it’s great to meet new people and build friendships. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to be everyone's cup of tea, so it's all relative.
I had a successful amateur career, the highlight of which was winning the 2015 British Amateur Championship. Winning at Alwoodley so close to home made my victory even more special. Thinking back on my amateur days, I realize now how hard it was – just like playing on tour as a pro, playing a lot of golf in a short period of time. When I made the switch to the paid ranks in 2016 and started playing on the PGA EuroPro Tour, I thought it would be a lot easier than it turned out to be. When you play as an amateur, usually on links courses, if you're one or two strokes under par you're in contention, whereas on the European Pro Tour a score usually means you're in the cut hovering near the line. It's a wake-up call and all of a sudden you have to change your mindset and go for the flag. It's tough. You'll be spending between £800 and £1,000 a week, and to make that money back you'll have to be in the top ten. Although many may not think so, it is a difficult task. Every year, the players are getting better and better. Although I'm stuck with EuroPro, it's a great platform for many players.
Coming back to now, even after a successful season, I don't take anything for granted. I am a glass half empty person. This game is so volatile that whatever you think you have could be gone tomorrow. I would never consider this my ten years on tour because I know after next year I'll probably be back on the Challenge Tour. While I would love to stay on tour for many years, knowing how difficult it is, my optimism is not that positive. There are a lot of great players out there. People might think I'm being very negative, but if you were in my situation then I think you'd understand. I just want to keep my card but I don't think next year is a given and staying on tour is going to be a tough task.
I think one of the challenges for aspiring players is that from a young age you feel like you have to go out, hit some balls, go to the gym and repeat, and while that may work for the odd person out, I Think that usually holds a lot of people back and takes away a lot of hope because they're told this is what they need to do to get to the Tour. This is not true. This is probably one of the biggest lies I’ve ever heard: “Doing more is the answer,” but that’s clearly not the case. If I'm working in the evening (which I do most of the time), I'll go and play nine holes with the guys, get something to eat and go to work, or I'll putt for 20 minutes and hit the driving range for 10 minutes , punch a few holes, and go to work. This game is very personal, you just have to find the one that works for you.
Joe Dean talks to DP World Tour's Mathieu Wood.
