Australian golfer Mark Hensby is in a desperate battle to halt a downward slide.
Ranked 27th in the world as recently as 2007, the 37-year-old now finds himself sharing tee space in less illustrious company on a weekly basis on the Nationwide Tour.
He lost his PGA Tour card last year after a season seriously interrupted by injury, a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder forcing him to bide his time for 4-1/2 months.
Now he's on a mission to reclaim his PGA Tour status via the secondary Nationwide circuit and showed he still has a game worth watching as he posted a six-under-par 66 in the third round of the $US600,000 New Zealand Open at The Hills here today.
His bogey free round in a stiffening southwesterly wind promoted him from 38th equal to a share of fourth place, seven shots behind the leader, American rookie Robert Gates.
This is Hensby's first Nationwide event since he attended PGA Tour qualifying school late last year, something he recalled as a humbling experience.
"It was a weird feeling. It was really hard to take," said Hensby, who played for the International team in the Presidents Cup in 2005 and 2007.
"It's not that you think you are better than anyone else, but it was definitely an eye opener." Hensby, who had a stellar season in 2005 when he tied for third behind New Zealand's Michael Campbell at the US Open and finished fifth equal at the Masters, said he was highly motivated to force his way back on to the main tour.
He knows he will have to work hard to make that happen due to the ever improving standards on the Nationwide Tour.
"I want to get back there but it seems like it's a lot harder to get back there than it was to get there in the first place," said Hensby, who won the 2004 John Deere Classic and whose PGA Tour tournament earnings stand at close to $US6 million.
Hensby has rebuilt his career before, following a car accident in 2006. He emerged from the accident with a foot injury which limited his playing opportunities, but eventually got back where he wanted to be.
He has more experience than most in the field at The Hills but does not think that alone will work in his favour when the pressure intensifies in the closing round tomorrow.
"Years ao, going into the last round you might have expected some of them to drop back, but now they go low.
"The kids aren't scared any more."