Maximilian Steinlechner is hoping he can once again flourish under the local spotlight as he targets his third win as a professional on home soil in as many years at the Austrian Alpine Open presented by Kitzbühel Tirol.
The Austrian, who is competing in his rookie season on the DP World Tour after graduating from the HotelPlanner Tour last year, will this week make his fifth appearance at his national open.
Born in Innsbruck, nearby to new host venue Golfclub Kitzbühel-Schwarzsee-Reith, Steinlechner may be coming into the event under the radar compared to countryman and two-time Ryder Cup winner Sepp Straka, but he is the source of much expectation.
Last year, Steinlechner delighted the home crowd by securing his first HotelPlanner Tour title with a two-shot triumph at the Interwetten Open as he went on to finish third on the Road to Mallorca Rankings and secure a rookie campaign on the DP World Tour in 2026.
That triumph came a little over a year on from his first victory in the paid ranks at the Gösser Open on the Alps Tour, and the 26-year-old now has the chance to become just the third home winner at the Austrian Open after Markus Brier and Bernd Wiesberger.
"I'm certainly going for it," he told the DP World Tour during Wednesday's Pro-Am.
"I mean, trying to go into a week saying I'm going to win is a little bit stupid, but I mean obviously I'm going to prepare the best I can and then give myself my best shot at standing there on the last green as the last man on Sunday."
Steinlechner is one of 14 Austrian players in the field, including former event winner Bernd Wiesberger and Straka, but competing in the alpine setting of Kitzbühel carries perhaps more personal meaning than most others.
While Golfclub Kitzbühel-Schwarzsee-Reith hosted an event on the HotelPlanner Tour in 2003, this week sees the venue become the 465th on golf's global tour since its inception in 1972.
A golf ambassador for the Tyrol region, Steinlechner missed his five cuts of the DP World Tour season but he has since made five of his past nine starts, including a top-15 finish in South Africa in March.
So, while he is yet to fully thrive, he will not be in short supply of support as the European Swing continues with its second consecutive national open and ninth of the Race to Dubai campaign.
"It's very special. I think it's the first time that the DP World Tour has an event in the area where I grew up in Tyrol in Salzburg," he said.
Obviously I'm going to prepare the best I can and then give myself my best shot at standing there on the last green as the last man on Sunday
"A lot of friends and family will come out and watch.
"In a way, it's a tournament like every other one, but in a way, it's just very special and unique and I'll definitely look forward to playing tomorrow.
"Some of my friends have been out to tournaments before and they'll definitely let me know if I make a good birdie and hit a good shot. So it's going to be fun.
"And the crowd in Austria is usually, they enjoy golf. So I'm sure a lot of people will come out as well, it's going to be good."
