I almost stopped, says Herbert

Lucas Herbert enjoys a break at home. Image: Getty

Young Australian pro Lucas Herbert has revealed that he was about to stop playing golf this year when his European Tour campaign crashed and loneliness began.

Herbert struggled with life away from home, friends and family that he returned to Melbourne after the Scottish Open in July and thought about his future.

The 23-year-old has come to realize that he must regain his love for the game in 2020.

"Halfway through the year when I came home from the Irish and Scottish Opens, I didn't even know if I wanted to play more golf," he told the Australasian PGA Tour podcast. "Because I didn't like the game. I played great, didn't like it at all.

"I didn't enjoy the routine, not the many sacrifices you have to make to play well. I just wasn't in a place where I wanted to make them. Everyone wants to play well. But (I was thinking)" if I lose my card this year, I like to go home and get a job as a chippy, or as a carpenter or something. ”

Herbert's revelation is instructive in a world where it is assumed that playing golf is a lot of fun.

Herbert, who had his breakthrough year in 2018, said it was fairly common for players to fall back on tour in the second year.

"If you keep following that upward trend, it has to go backwards somewhere. You can't keep up with the trend, otherwise you would be number 1 in the world at the age of 19. You are going to get setbacks," he said.

The Victorian, ranked as 188th in the world, has a break before returning to Europe, but has already set out a schedule with some visits from family and friends. He said that the balance between work and private life was his focus. "If you don't like golf, your job is a bastard," he said. "So if you're sure you like to play golf, that's a pretty good starting point."