Back at the scene of his most recent European Challenge Tour win, Alex Knappe is hoping that good memories of this week’s Hainan Open can help him to begin enjoying golf more.
The German is currently 68thon the Road to Ras Al Khaimah with the two-week ‘Chinese Swing’ and the Ras Al Khaimah Challenge Tour Grand Final still to come as the season edges towards its conclusion.
He believes his game is ‘pretty good’ right now but needs to convert his good shots into good scores while raising the level of enjoyment out on the course.
“My game is actually pretty good. I’m hitting it well and around the green I’m good; wedge game is fine and putting is excellent.
“I’m feeling good about my game but the scores just aren’t there yet. It will click at some point, hopefully this week.
“I’m clearly out of the top 15 so I basically need a win,” he said. “I’ll just see how this week goes and then I’ll assess my goals. I just want to have a good time out there on the course and enjoy it because it was really frustrating the last two months.
“I’ve been playing good golf with no results and I lost my patience a little bit. I want to enjoy it a little bit more and I think that’s the secret to make it click again.”
Knappe was the winner of the inaugural Hainan Open in 2016, when the tournament was reduced to 36 holes due to inclement weather, and he remembers his victory with fondness, as well as the components which contributed to his second triumph of the year.
“I won the tournament and it secured my card for the European Tour two years ago so I have some good memories here,” he said.
“I think iron shots are important round here. The tee shots, you can miss them a little bit and they’ll still be in play but towards the green, you have to hit good shots to have opportunities. I remember hitting good shots into the greens and that’s key.
“Most of the time, you can put the water out of play by allowing for more space on the other side. It’s not like there’s water left and right, usually it’s just water left or right. You just have to avoid the water and give yourself chances.
“I played a few holes this morning and the greens are a lot firmer than two years ago. The fairways are quite soft but other than that, it’s pretty similar. I think you can be a little bit more aggressive off the tee because two years ago, if you were in the bunker you had no shot.”
With the hot and humid weather conditions in Sanya, players could be forgiven for feeling uncomfortable, but the 26 year old is relishing the balmy temperatures.
“We were in Ireland last week and it was really, really cold but now it’s hot and I like it hot,” he said. “It’s better for my muscles and I hit the ball longer – I feel much more comfortable in hot weather.
“It just suits me and maybe that’s the reason why I seem to do well in China.”
