Pablo Larrazabal feeling buoyant ahead of KLM Open

Pablo Larrazabal feels he is "trending" at the right time as he looks to defend his title at the KLM Open in the Netherlands this week.

The Spaniard challenged on his last DP World Tour outing at the European Open in Germany before finishing in a tie for 13th.

He has since had two weeks off to spend time with his newborn son but feels his game is in good shape as he returns for the Dutch event he won last year.

The 41-year-old said on europeantour.com "I am very close to being up there. It's all about getting into position.

"Obviously at the last tournament I was in position to win. On Saturday I didn't play well and fell a little too far back.

"But I am trending, reaching that level to try and put myself in position more often."

The tournament returns to the International in Amsterdam for the first time since 2019 after moving from Bernardus Golf in Cromvoirt.

Welshman Jamie Donaldson, a Ryder Cup winner in 2014, is set to make his 500th DP World Tour start, while local favourite Joost Luiten is bidding for a third title on home soil.

Northern Ireland's Tom McKibbin returns to European action fresh from making the cut in his first major at the US Open last week. Italian pair Matteo Manassero and Edoardo Molinari are among the other entrants who were also in the field at Pinehurst.