Lindell is keen to return to the starting line in Denmark after a month-long break
Oliver Lindell is returning from an exceptionally long break from competition, with this week’s ‘home race’ on the Great Northern course in Denmark coming up. It has already been a whole month since his last competition, but the long break at home has done him no harm.
“I’m really looking forward to getting back to work. I’ve certainly been keen to get back on the pitch, but it was nice to spend a longer spell at home for the first time in a while. After a month’s break, there’s always a question mark over how things will go. At least, I haven’t encountered any major challenges during training sessions. I’ve done a bit of fine-tuning of my technique at home, but nothing too drastic.”
Lindell has maintained his good form by playing numerous rounds in Finland, both at his home course in Virvik and at other courses. Among these, a round of 59 strokes at Espoo Ringside Golf – an exceptional feat in Finland – caught the media’s attention, demonstrating the Porvoo native’s striking ability. Whilst it cannot be compared to a competitive situation, a round of under 60 strokes is nevertheless a sign that his game is on form. Lindell was also somewhat surprised that his ‘practice round’ made the headlines.
Great Northern is a golf course that’s only a few years old, and it hasn’t hosted any major tournaments. In that sense, the competition starts with a clean slate. The tournament has typically attracted a strong field of domestic players in particular, alongside PGA players such as Rasmus Hojgaard and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen. Lindell will play the first two rounds alongside the latter, as well as Swedish legend Henrik Stenson.
The trio will begin their competition on Thursday at 9.10 Finnish time. On Friday, the Nordic group will be one of the groups featured on television in the afternoon.
Lindell described the new tournament venue as a links-style course, albeit one featuring a great many water hazards. Avoiding these will be key on a course that otherwise appears fairly straightforward.
“The wind was strong during our practice rounds on Monday and Tuesday, but today the weather has been calm, which made the course feel really easy. The wind is forecast to pick up towards the weekend, and the course will certainly be more challenging. It’s a completely different experience playing this course in strong winds. The aim is to keep the ball dry with every shot; I believe that will take me a long way. There’s certainly no shortage of water on this course. The rough is fairly forgiving too, and you can get out of it easily unless you’re unlucky,” said Lindell.