Hensby consults Olazabal over foot injury

Australian Mark Hensby has sought advice from Jose Maria Olazabal amid fears he has the same injury which almost ended the double US Masters champion's career.

Olazabal withdrew from the 1995 Ryder Cup with a foot injury which was initially diagnosed as rheumatoid polyarthritis and saw him confined to a wheelchair.

He feared his playing days were over until the problem was correctly identified by German doctor Hans Wilhelm Muller-Wolfhart as a disc problem in his lower back, and the Spanish star eventually returned to competition after an 18-month absence.

Hensby’s injuries are a result of a car crash earlier this year in America and could force him to cut short his season after defending his title in this week’s Scandinavian Masters.

“I damaged my leg, back and had a lot of whiplash,” explained the 35-year-old from Melbourne.

“My feet have been really bad, and I really have been struggling to walk 18 holes. I would say this will probably be my last event of the year.

“I just had an MRI scan done before I left to come here and I will get another one done when I get back to see what is going on. I talked to Olazabal, and he had a very similar thing to what I have got – so at least I know where to look.

“I may go and see the same doctor in Germany but I will see the guys in America first and see what happens.”

Many of Europe’s top players have chosen to miss the £1.1m (€1.6m) event in Malmo after a busy period on the European Tour, but former US Open champion Michael Campbell is among the 159-strong field.

The New Zealander is fifth favourite for the title behind home favourites Henrik Stenson, Carl Pettersson, Niclas Fasth and last week’s winner Robert Karlsson – four of a record 48 Swedes competing – but he is struggling to find top form.

“The last six months have been frustrating, because I have had a couple of chances to win tournaments but haven’t managed to finish them off through trying too hard,” said the Brighton-based 37-year-old.

“The expectations are high, and I am putting too much pressure on myself out there. Once you win a big one like the US Open you always want to win more, and there is a time gap between majors for most people.

“You are in a transitional world where you are playing well but nothing is going in because you are trying too hard. Once you win a second one it gets a lot easier.

“I am staying positive about the whole thing and have six or seven years left to play top-quality golf.”

Campbell can at least put his current struggles into perspective when he looks back to his first experience of golf in Sweden on the Challenge Tour in 1997.

“I try to erase those memories,” he joked.

“They are not very pleasant at all – 1997 was a very tough year for me. That was when I lost my card and played a few Challenge Tour events.

“Those years make you appreciate the better times. In life you learn from your mistakes – and I made a few in 1997.

“Here I am, nine years later, with a major under my belt. Everyone goes through those dark times, but you have to in order to become a better person. It was one of the darker periods of my playing career but has made me a better player.”

It also ensured Campbell would never employ his wife Julie as his caddie ever again.

“I sacked her after one round!” he added. “I found it difficult to separate her from wife and caddie and things like raking the bunker or being too slow.”