'I don't want my career to end like this': Hensby eyeing epic comeback

It was the school drop-off and pick-up which meant the most to Mark Hensby, when his son Caden would grin because dad was around almost every day. The golf clubs had been stuffed in a corner of Hensby's American home and he couldn't care less. He didn't want to touch them.

But the smiles? Maybe there was a silver lining in all of this.

Comeback: Mark Hensby.

Comeback: Mark Hensby.Credit:AAP

"That was a lot of pleasure," Hensby says. "I have a boy that's seven and he's a special needs kid. To see him improve in his disability [in the last year] was a lot of fun to watch. If I go somewhere, he says, 'where are you going?' He's trying to make sure I'm not leaving."

To most who knew Hensby as an Australian professional golfer who once finished third in the US Open and top five in a US Masters in 2005, Hensby had left and was never likely to return.

Last October, he violated the USPGA Tour's strict anti-doping policy. For his part, Hensby has always insisted he had never taken a banned substance.

Having left the 18th green steaming after an opening round 78 during a USPGA Tour event in America in 2017, Hensby went to the toilet. He was told shortly after he would need to provide a urine sample. He thought he would be able to do so the next morning and left the course. It broke the Tour's policy and he was handed a 12-month suspension.

"There was a lot of time there where it was hard listening to comments for the first six months," Hensby says. "I was down, not so much for the fact what I did in not doing the test. I offered to do the test.

"But the repercussions on people like my family … that was the hardest part. They shouldn't have to be dealing with what I did, and to the extent of it.

"I learned about patience and it's a cruel world out there. If you make a mistake they're going to rip on you. And so be it, I deserved it. I don't believe I deserved a year [ban]. But I learned a lot. The people who believe in you and understand you are the ones that really matter."

Sitting in a quiet corner of Twin Creeks Golf and Country Club on Friday, Hensby can't believe how he's faring in his first professional tournament back. He's just signed for a sizzling second round eight-under 64, firing him up the NSW Open leaderboard.

The letter I wrote to the PGA tours said, 'I don't want my career to end like this'. I dug it out of the dirt, I worked my arse off

A few months ago, he thought he would never return to professional golf. But after sending correspondence to a number of worldwide tours asking for invites to return to the game, the first offer has been a good one.

"The letter I wrote to the PGA tours said, 'I don't want my career to end like this'," says Hensby. "I dug it out of the dirt, I worked my arse off and for it to end like this … it would have been a pity for me.

"Every time someone pulls my name up it's the first thing that pops up. To be honest, I don't think that's fair. I want to do something in the next couple of years, whether it be before the seniors tour or after. I would definitely like one more run at it."

Contender: Harrison Endycott.

Contender: Harrison Endycott.Credit:AAP

Hensby, 47, sits four shots behind second round leader Harrison Endycott (-12), who also took advantage of the benign morning conditions in Sydney's greater west to shoot an eight-under 64 on Friday. He has a one-shot lead from Victorian youngster Cameron John late in the second round.

But the man lurking is USPGA Tour winner Hensby, who is intent on writing another golfing comeback story straight after the Tiger Woods melodrama.

"I was shocked [on Friday], to be honest," Hensby said. "I was shocked because I got it to three-under and then I made eagle and thought, 'I may as well keep going now'. Things just happened.

"If I'm there at the end I'd love to have a crack at it, but I've got to be realistic. I haven't done it in a long, long time."

NSW OPEN
-12: Harrison Endycott (NSW)
-11: Cameron John (Vic)
-10: Brad Moules (SA), Blake Proverbs (Qld)
-9: Jake McLeod (Qld), Matthew Millar (ACT), Ashley Hall (Vic)
-8: Mark Hensby (NSW), Blake Collyer (am, Vic), Jordan Mullaney (NSW)

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