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• Luke Donald admits tough times – thought about quitting
• Former world No.1 hasn’t won on two main tours since 2012
• ‘Fully expects’ to get back among the world’s best

LUKE DONALD | THE OPEN

Luke Donald has revealed he had ‘flashes’ of thoughts about quitting the game and admitted he misses all the media attention that comes with being one of the world’s best players.

The former world No.1, who spent 40 consecutive weeks at the summit between May 2011 and March 2012, hasn’t won an event on the two main tours since the 2012 BMW PGA Championship and, now ranked No.64, said he appreciates the good times that he had more now.

“There were times when I thought: do I need to keep doing this?” – Luke Donald

“When you’re on that good roll, you don’t really think about things and how easy success comes,” Luke Donald said. “Sometimes it takes tough times to realise that. You always have thoughts about whether you can get back to where you were and out of the slump. It happens to most players though and that’s just the ebbs and flows of golf.

“There were times when I thought: do I need to keep doing this? But I’m a golfer, I enjoy doing it and I like competing so it was a flash that came into my head and never materialised into anything.”

Luke Donald followed up a strong week at the Scottish Open, where he finished in a tie for seventh, with an impressive four-under-par 68 in the first round of the Open at St Andrews – his ninth straight round in the 60s.

CONTINUES BELOW…

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And in what is perhaps a surprise, the 37-year-old said he misses all the media attention he once received and is hopeful that another solid performance on the Old Course this week can propel him back among the best in the world.

“In a way I miss all the media and the glitter,” said the 2011 Race to Dubai and PGA Tour money list winner. “When you’re playing well, that’s the fanfare that comes with it. It’s part and parcel of the sport but I fully expect to get back to something very close to what I was a few years ago.”

Luke Donald :: A return to the top?

Can Luke Donald full regain his form and return to being one of the best players in the world? Leave your thoughts in the ‘Comments’ section below.

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