After another Major near-miss at Royal St George’s, disappointed South African Louis Oosthuizen returns to chasing his first US victory at this week’s PGA 3M Open.
World No 9 Oosthuizen arrived for Thursday’s start at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minnesota, after sharing third place this past Sunday at the British Open behind US winner Collin Morikawa.
This week’s key question is how well is he up for the challenge of getting back into a tour event when his next Major test won’t come until the Masters next April.
“You’re a little bit more tired,” he said. “I’m not doing much this week on the range. Just resting up and waiting to start and just try and get the mind as fresh as I can.
“I know the game is there, I’m swinging well and I’m putting nicely, so I just need to not make that many thinking errors. That happens when you come off a Major week. You’re a little bit out there with the few decisions you make, but it’s the one thing I’m trying to avoid this week.”
Chasing another title could be the best medicine after another Major failure, Oosthuizen said.
“I think I’m glad that I entered in this event to sort of get back in there and play and not really sit around at home and thinking about the disappointing Sunday last week,” he said.
Meanwhile, Oosthuizen said Covid-19 restrictions helped push him to skip the Tokyo Olympics.
“It was not an easy decision. I was very keen on going to the Olympics, but they didn’t really make it easy for us,” he said. “There was no way of me working with my physio there that week. He couldn’t go, so that made my decision a little bit easier.”
© Agence France-Presse
