By Mathieu Wood
Lucas Bjerregaard considered quitting golf earlier this year, but the support of his family kept him motivated as he continued his recent good form to sit in contention at the halfway stage of the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo.
The Dane won DP World Tour titles in 2017 and 2018, before he made headlines by defeating Tiger Woods in the quarter-finals of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play the following year.
However, this week marks just his tenth start on the DP World Tour since he lost his card in 2022, when he made just nine cuts in 28 starts.
After struggling last season on the European Challenge Tour, Bjerregaard is back in form with four consecutive top tens, the most recent of which came on home soil when he finished tied second at last week’s Danish Golf Championship.
That performance followed on from three good results on the Challenge Tour, and the good momentum appears to be continuing at The Belfry as a second-round six-under-par 66 left him four shots off halfway leader Tyrrell Hatton.
Asked to reflect on the challenges he has faced in recent years, Bjerregaard said in an interview in the Green Room: “My confidence sure as anything hasn't been anywhere near where I was back in my prime.
“So, it's been tough, no doubt. I've felt very alone. I have felt very much alone, looking for answers and not finding anything.
"The more I tried, the less success I had."
Bjerregaard sustained a back injury vacuuming at the start of the year and that led to him missing the opening four South Africa-based events of the Challenge Tour campaign alongside other playing opportunities.
"It was a pretty dark time where I thought about maybe doing something else than playing golf," the World Number 441 reflected.
Once under way, he would record three top 20s in his first seven events, before three consecutive top tens in July and August, and most recently he has since challenged for victory on home soil at the Danish Golf Championship, settling for tied second.
A week later, the 33-year-old is again in the mix for a return to the DP World Tour winner's circle after vaulting up the leaderboard with a six-under-par 66 that even included a double bogey.
He added: "I think I was on the verge of giving up the game a little bit and that has helped me to just go out there and play a little care-free and not worry too much about it.”
Amid the struggles, Bjerregaard, who first earned his DP World Tour through Qualifying School in 2013, said the backing of his family and friends had helped him retain belief that he could return to his former success.
Asked what gave him the belief to keep going, he said: "Probably my wife and kids. Most of the things I do is for is them. They've supported me. I think it would be wrong to give up now.
"My wife has stood behind me through all of this and it's been tough as a family to go through it, but she believes in me and I've got a good group of people at home believing in me and helping me out as much as they can and I think I owe it to them to give it my all."
