For Brandon Stone‚ winning the SA Open two years ago feels like yesterday.

His misadventures at the same course in the same tournament last year‚ however‚ has proved eminently forgettable for the 24-year old.

Last year’s event precipitated a slump in form but as he explained in the build up to this year’s event‚ he confronted those demons at the end of last season.

“Towards the beginning of October‚ towards the end of the season‚ I was finished.

"For the lack of a better expression‚ I was just burnt out‚ I was done and I was frustrated and I didn’t want to play.”

He stressed‚ however‚ that maybe the fatigue he felt then was ‘a blessing in disguise’.

“I had another horrible week at the Gary Player (the Nedbank Challenge)‚" he said.

"I don’t think I have ever played well there.

"So‚ getting in the car and driving back‚ my manager phones me and says 'You didn’t get into Dubai'.

"I was like ‘wow’.

“I didn’t cater for that.

"I kind of expected to get there at the start of the season.

"I went home‚ unpacked the suitcase that I had packed and probably took about three to four hours just sitting on my patio thinking about the season.”

He found that leaving his clubs untouched‚ limiting himself to only occasional contact‚ cathartic.

“I just said ‘you know what? Calm down. It’s done for the year and I just need a break’.

"And for six weeks I didn’t even look at my golf clubs.

"I got home from Nedbank‚ unpacked the bag in the garage and every now and then give them a kick when I got home.

"That was the extent of the contact that I had had with them for about six weeks.

"But‚ it really‚ really did benefit me.

"I feel fresh. I feel like I want to play. That was literally my reaction.

"I truly forgot that it was SA Open week and I just woke up and said ‘ok‚ cool.

"What am I going to do today?’ and I was like ‘Oh…it’s SA Open week.’ I got really excited.

"The blood got flowing in me and I really felt like I was ready for the week.”

When he tees up in the first round of the SA Open at Glendower on Thursday he will be hoping to recapture the form that catapulted him into the wider golfing consciousness two years ago.

“The game feels the same.

"I feel like the game’s in great shape.

"I feel like I’m playing nicely‚ short game has come along.

"It’s just night and day‚ mentally‚ so it’s the start of the season again and I feel fresh and I feel ready to go.”

- TimesLIVE

Source: TMG Digital.