Dewi-Claire Schreefel admits that she hasn’t played well since winning the 2014 Helsingborg Open so she will be looking to turn her season around in Sweden, albeit on a slightly altered Vasatorps course.
The 16th hole, formerly a par-4, will play as a par 5 for the 2015 championship which means the course is now a par 73.
“It’s good to be back. I like the golf course and the one change doesn’t really matter: one more birdie!” said Schreefel, 29, from the Netherlands.
“I think the course will play a little bit different because the area has had some water and it may rain again, so it will play longer. It hasn’t been a very good year, so hopefully I’ll make it a good end.”
Looking back at her play this season, she added: “I haven’t really been able to put my game together. Technically it wasn’t very good. I’ve had trouble finding the fairway for a couple of years now and it hasn’t really got better this year so it becomes a little bit mental. At a certain point, you’ve had enough, so you start working on it, but then it’s difficult to work on something when you have to play too because in the end, you have to make a score, so you go a little bit forward and backward while you play because you have to get the ball around the golf course. A few personal issues and the golf wasn’t very good either, so it’s difficult to make it happen, but that’s golf.”
Schreefel will start her title defence at 13:02 on Thursday when she tees off with Australian Rebecca Artis, the 2013 winner who finished second in 2014 and Beth Allen from the United States, who recently won the ISPS HANDA Ladies European Masters in England.
She highlighted a few of the home players as possible rivals for the title. “Pernilla Lindberg has had a steady year and with the home crowds, any of the Swedes could do well: Caroline Hedwall, Camilla Lennarth. Sometimes it’s harder to play in your home country and sometimes it gives you an extra boost.”
