After firing her best round of the season to finish runner-up at the Big Green Egg Open, Nicole Broch Estrup admits she now feels spurred on to return to the winner’s circle as she looks to go one better at this week’s VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open.
Despite starting the final day four back in the Netherlands, the Dane finished with a flurry carding a 65 (-7) to soar up the leaderboard and eventually finish one shot behind Thailand’s Trichat Cheenglab.
Admitting she struggled to sleep the night before Sunday’s showdown, Broch Estrup is pleased with how she handled the nerves at Hilversumsche Golf Club – a management of emotions she hopes to take with her into this week as she eyes victory number two on the Ladies European Tour (LET).
“Last week definitely gave me a lot of confidence but also slightly more pressure heading into this week,” she said. “I left with the feeling that now I want to win. Last week when I got nervous it was because I was putting the thoughts in about how much I want this. But I wasn’t scared of doing it like I have been in the past.
“I’ve said for probably most of the year, but I feel ready to win and I’m definitely getting closer every time I put myself in that position. I’m confident but at the same time still nervous about the same stuff.”
Broch Estrup – whose solo LET victory came in 2015 at the Helsingborg Open – has continued to remain honest and open about her mental struggles throughout her quest to secure win number two.
Speaking on the LET Golf Podcast in May, the Dane opened up about how anxiety and nerves have been part of her game for the past few years, obstacles she handled well en route to securing her best finish of the season in the Netherlands.
“[My mental game] is getting a lot better,” Broch Estrup said. “But even last week from Saturday to Sunday I slept so bad. I woke up and I was so nervous even though I was four shots off the lead. I text Kasper my husband and I told him I was really nervous for some reason. All the result thoughts just popped in.
“But I dealt with it well, obviously seven-under on a Sunday is really nice but to do it while having to deal with other stuff, both before and on the course, it was no to get over that hump.”
As for this week, while the narrow defeat to Cheenglab has clearly rallied Broch Estrup’s desire to win, the 30-year-old insists she doesn’t what to put too much pressure on herself as she gets set to tee up at Golfpark Holzhäusern.
She explained: “Obviously I want to go one better than last week, but to follow one good week with another is something I’ve struggled with pretty much my whole career. I tend to put more pressure on myself the week after a good week.
“It’s all about just trying to get back to basics. My golf is in a good spot and it feels simple at the moment. But just like in the past, it’s the mental stuff which can get in the way.”
Broch Estrup gets underway at the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open at 08:22 local time on Friday alongside fellow one-time LET winners Alice Hewson and Ursula Wikstrom.
Follow all the action on @LETGolf on Instagram and X and Ladies European Tour on Facebook and YouTube – #RaiseOurGame #SwissLadiesOpen.
