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Chris Wood is a three-time DP World Tour winner, Ryder Cup player, and someone who's spent much of his life competing against the best golfers in the world.
He had a pretty remarkable start to his professional career. After impressing at The Open, he earned his tour card almost straight away and went on to establish himself as one of England's leading players.
And he loved it. The crowds, the competition, the pressure. All the things that come with playing golf at that level.
Then, around 2019, something started to change.
Chris began experiencing feelings on the golf course that he couldn't explain. His confidence disappeared, particularly with the driver, and things that had once felt completely natural became incredibly difficult.
At Wentworth, it reached the point where he couldn't even put a driver in his bag.
For four years, Chris tried to fight his way through it. He kept practising, competing and looking for answers, without fully understanding that he was dealing with anxiety and burnout.
Eventually, he reached breaking point.
In this conversation, Chris talks openly about what those years were really like, how his struggles affected life at home, and a phone call with his parents that helped change the direction things were heading.
We also talk about seeking help, the surprising impact of speaking publicly about his experiences, rebuilding his confidence, and why returning to winning tournaments has meant something very different this time around.
And away from golf, we get into his family, being a dad of four, and the little things he's doing to make sure his children grow up feeling comfortable talking about how they're doing.
Chris still has plenty he wants to achieve in golf.
But these days, he's also determined to enjoy playing it again.
Most of us aren't trying to win golf tournaments for a living. But plenty of us know what it's like to stand over a shot and feel like we've suddenly forgotten how to play golf.
A few bad rounds turn into a few bad weeks. You start thinking about your swing more, worrying about where the ball might go, and putting pressure on yourself to sort it out.
For Chris, that feeling became something much more serious.
He spent four years battling anxiety and burnout, trying to work his way through it with the same determination that had helped him reach the top of professional golf.
And that's an interesting part of his story.
Sometimes the thing that's helped us succeed can become the thing that keeps us stuck.
We see it in golf all the time. Something isn't working, so we practise harder, analyse more, try another technique or convince ourselves we just need to toughen up.
Sometimes that helps. Sometimes we're just adding more pressure to something we're already struggling with.
One of the most revealing moments in Chris's story is when he talks about finally telling his parents he couldn't carry on. They didn't offer swing advice or tell him to keep fighting.
They simply told him to come home.
And sometimes that's what we need. Not another solution, but someone willing to listen and give us a bit of space.
Chris also talks about how much it meant when a member at his home club approached him after reading about his struggles. Nothing particularly profound was said. Just a few kind words and a bit of understanding.
It's a good reminder of something golf clubs can be really good at.
We spend hours alongside the same people, week after week. We notice when someone's having a tough time with their game, but we don't always know what's happening away from it.
And we don't need to know everything.
Sometimes asking how someone's doing, listening properly, or making them feel welcome on a difficult day can matter more than we realise.
Chris is still working on his golf. He's still ambitious and still wants to win.
But he's also learning that looking after the person holding the club is every bit as important as fixing what happens when they swing it.
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