Lucas Bjerregaard has been in excellent form in recent weeks, with the 33-year-old carrying that good form over to the DP World Tour after three consecutive top-10 finishes on the Challenge Tour and a T2 finish at the Denmark Golf Championships in his native Denmark last week.
He also topped the Betfred British Masters leaderboard thanks to seven birdies and an eagle in his second round, which saw him finish at six under on Saturday at The Belfry.
Speaking after that round in the DP World Tour dugout, where players are often interviewed in the immediate aftermath of a match and where the results are often surprisingly honest, Bjerregard admitted that before his recent upswing in form he had hit some rough patches that made him question whether he had a future.
“There was nothing that indicated I was going to do well,” he said. “I think I might have been a little bit tempted to give up on the game, and I think it helped me to go out there and be more carefree and not worry too much.”
Bjerregard then tried to identify what had caused him to feel frustrated earlier this year. He continued: “I think my technique wasn't good enough and my confidence, to be honest, wasn't as good as it was in my prime.”
The two-time DP World Tour champion also explained that an unexpected back injury left him pessimistic about his future. “It was tough, for sure,” he said. “I felt very alone. I felt very hard trying to find answers and finding nothing, and you know the harder I tried, the less success I had.
“At the beginning of the year I hurt my back vacuuming my house and I couldn’t play for two and a half months, it was a really dark period and I thought maybe there was something else I could do besides golf, so I thought maybe I had to go through that before I could start playing better again.”
“I almost gave up.” Powerful words from @LBjerregaard 💪 #BetfredBritishMasters pic.twitter.com/CjCxyBK49mAugust 30, 2024
Bjerregard is not the only player to have doubts about his place in the game this week. Last year, Andrew “Beef” Johnston spoke publicly about his mental health struggles following his meteoric rise in the game, admitting it led him to put pressure on himself to succeed, only to see his form plummet.
He also spoke in the green room after his second round, admitting his mental health is better now that he is back to playing regularly.
He said: “Yeah, it was good. Really happy to be back playing. I really enjoyed the time I had… I had five solid weeks and the summer break and this is my third time back in a row and I'm really enjoying getting back into that atmosphere and playing again. I really missed it.”
Beef revealed he is happy to be playing regularly again
(Image source: Getty Images)
Johnston then explained what he misses after leaving the game. He added: “Just thinking about the game. I know everybody here. You know, this is a job you do for a long time.”
“You grow up and see everybody grow up together, it’s like one big friend group, so you miss some of the guys, but you also miss the competition because there’s not that outlet.
“I'm really happy to be back playing” 💙 So glad you were in the green room, @BeefGolf 🥩 #BetfredBritishMasters pic.twitter.com/oFrvJ45ZELAugust 30, 2024
“I never realised that when I hear athletes talk about when they retire, whether it's football players or rugby players, they retire at 35, you miss that game and it's hard to replace it. I've felt that for the past two years.”