Eddie Pepperell was keeping his focus on golf as he continued his battle for a full DP World Tour card to sit just a shot off the lead heading into the weekend at the DP World India Championship.
The Englishman has had a roller coaster of a career over the last decade, since a late season loss of form saw him lose his status in 2016.
He gained his card straight back and won twice in 2018 but then lost it again in 2024, missing a seven-footer for eagle on the final hole at Q School weeks later that would have seen him bounce straight back for a second time.
He has revealed that in the 12 months that followed he even self-harmed at times but on his return to INFINITUM for another Q School, he birdied the last four holes to again get himself back on Tour.
The 35-year-old was having a consistent 2026 but a recent neck injury saw him miss a month and once again he is in danger of heading to the six-round marathon in Spain.
Playing on an invite at last week's Open de España presented by Madrid, he birdied four of his last seven holes in round two to make the cut on the number and a tie for 55th saw him move from 101st to 100th on the Race to Dubai Rankings Delivered by Rolex.
But with little chance of making the field for the regular season finale next week in Korea, he knows full well he needs a good week at Delhi Golf Club to keep him in the mix.
After seeing his chances of play wiped out by storms on Thursday, he played 36 holes on day two and carded rounds of 71-66 to sit at seven under heading into the weekend.
With all his history, Pepperell could be forgiven for focusing on the bigger picture but after 15 years as a professional, he insists the opposite is true as he and wife Jen enjoy their time in the Indian capital.
"Honestly I haven't really been thinking about that a great deal to be quite frank, and that's obviously a good thing," he said.
"I've been there in the past and... I think back to 2016 when I had the horrendous finish and that felt quite crippling.
Eddie Pepperell comes close to an ace at the 17th! 🎯#DPWIC pic.twitter.com/UUw1AXDjJu
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) October 16, 2026
"So I'm not thinking about that, just trying to play good golf. And that's a bit of a cliché thing to say but it's the reality. And enjoy our time.
"The event is fantastic. We're staying on site, Jen and I, Jen is on the bag. We're really enjoying ourselves. Long may that continue."
While the Pepperells may be enjoying themselves, the narrow layout of Delhi Golf Club is no holiday, certainly not when you face 36 holes in a single day.
Eddie, however, is even using that to his advantage, as he looks to keep his mind on the scorecard rather than the Rankings.
"I didn't have great expectations," he said. "Such a long day; 36 holes. I haven't done that since probably a U.S. Open qualifier, one of the ones I didn't walk in.
"I just tried to hang in there. It was a tough, tough day with all of that, just thinking that, to be honest with you.
"Maybe that helped set my mind off some other stuff. I hit the ball well off the tee, which you've got to do out here. I wasn't always spectacular with my irons and that frustrated me a bit at times.
"But hung in there. Short game was good. A good day's golf, so certainly set myself up for hopefully a good weekend.
"I had a period off with the injury and then I didn't play well at all before my injury and after having some time off in the summer, and I feel like I'm playing a bit better than I was, but still got some bad stuff going on at times.
"So yeah, if you can roll that into the weekend and play with a bit of confidence, then who knows? It's the kind of course you sort of keep your head down and not focus too much on the trees if you can and post a score, and who knows what might happen?"
