For half a year, the golf clubs were allowed to collect dust after Anders Hansen’s career break in 2015. Then he missed the game, resumed his career and has since appeared sporadically on the European Tour.
When Anders Hansen turns 50 on Wednesday 16 September, he can, unlike most athletes of the same age, continue to call himself an active athlete.
– The first six months after my stop were amazing. I had fun and did not touch a golf club at all, the golfer from Sønderborg in 2018 told the golf podcast Chip In.
– But then I started to get bored and thought I could just go up and hit a few balls, and then I got caught in it again.
It was clear that it was not golf he was fed up with. It was travel, airports, hotels and time away from family.
He made sure to keep his card for the European Tour and has played between two and nine tournaments a year from 2016 onwards.
He was part of the Danish golf boom in the 1990s led by Thomas Bjørn, and although Bjørn became the biggest star, Anders Hansen also achieved a couple of solid triumphs.
It turned into three victories on the European Tour, and two of them were at the very heavy end of the scale.
Anders Hansen topped the European Tours tournament flagship in 2002, which was then called the Volvo PGA Championship. Even with the then record low 19 under par as the score after the four rounds.
Five years later, the title sponsor had switched to BMW, but the winner was the same when Anders Hansen in 2007 repeated the feat in the tournament.
In the same year, he also became the first Dane to qualify for the PGA Tour in the USA, which, however, never became a success for southern Jutland, which subsequently turned its nose towards Europe after a year.
The victory at the smaller Joburg Open in 2009 was his third and – for the time being, it must rightly be added – last.
However, he also managed to impress with a third place at the major tournament PGA Championship in 2011, which despite name coincidence must not be confused with the tournament, which Hansen won twice.
A major title he hardly reaches. But he may well be content with a career that has rounded 442 tournaments on the European Tour, a year on the PGA Tour and more than $ 90 million raised in prize money.
– The first six months after my stop were amazing. I had fun and did not touch a golf club at all, the golfer from Sønderborg in 2018 told the golf podcast Chip In.
– But then I started to get bored and thought I could just go up and hit a few balls, and then I got caught in it again.
It was clear that it was not golf he was fed up with. It was travel, airports, hotels and time away from family.
He made sure to keep his card for the European Tour and has played between two and nine tournaments a year from 2016 onwards.
He was part of the Danish golf boom in the 1990s led by Thomas Bjørn, and although Bjørn became the biggest star, Anders Hansen also achieved a couple of solid triumphs.
It turned into three victories on the European Tour, and two of them were at the very heavy end of the scale.
Anders Hansen topped the European Tours tournament flagship in 2002, which was then called the Volvo PGA Championship. Even with the then record low 19 under par as the score after the four rounds.
Five years later, the title sponsor had switched to BMW, but the winner was the same when Anders Hansen in 2007 repeated the feat in the tournament.
In the same year, he also became the first Dane to qualify for the PGA Tour in the USA, which, however, never became a success for southern Jutland, which subsequently turned its nose towards Europe after a year.
The victory at the smaller Joburg Open in 2009 was his third and – for the time being, it must rightly be added – last.
However, he also managed to impress with a third place at the major tournament PGA Championship in 2011, which despite name coincidence must not be confused with the tournament, which Hansen won twice.
A major title he hardly reaches. But he can be happy with a career that has rounded 442 tournaments on the European Tour, a year on the PGA Tour and more than 90 million kroner raised in prize money.
Source: The Nordic Page