BASINGSTOKE golfer Stuart Archibald is determined to get his season back on track after taking two weeks off to recover from an elbow problem.

The 30-year-old withdrew from last week’s EuroPro Tour event in Northumberland due to a niggling injury. The tour, which is the third tier of competition in Europe, takes a break this week, and Archibald is hoping that he will have fully recovered in time for next week’s event at Camberwell Park in Wiltshire.

He said: “My elbow was giving me a bit of trouble and with this week being a week off, I decided to rest it and come back with a better attitude and feeling more confident in myself.

“I’m hoping that it just needs a bit of rest. It doesn’t hurt to swing but it gets sore with repetition, so I have to keep practice to a minimum.”

It has been a hugely frustrating start to the EuroPro Tour season for Archibald. The Worting golfer got some great results in north Africa during the spring, but has missed the cut at all three EuroPro Tour events he has played in.

“When I came back from Morocco, I had a month without any events, which was really difficult,” he said. “I did plenty of practice, but seemed to play my way out of form and the start of the EuroPro season has been a bit of a nightmare.

“If I can get back to the form I was showing in the spring, I would back myself to win a couple of events and get on the Challenge Tour next year. It’s just a case of getting my form back and keeping hold of it.”

Archibald has decided to focus completely on the EuroPro Tour, choosing not to try and qualify for The Open to ensure that he is completely prepared for every event.

He added: “The trouble with Open qualifying is that you can go there playing really well and narrowly miss out. That can have a demoralising effect on the rest of your season.”