INTERVIEW-Golf-Oosthuizen exhausted after biggest year of life

By Ken Borland

MALELANE, South Africa Dec 10 (Reuters) - British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen looks a wreck as he takes a seat on a couch in the plush Leopard Creek clubhouse, the sweat from a round in sub-tropical heat still glistening in his stubble.

But the fatigue is mostly mental, even though Oosthuizen has just taken 71 shots to get around the course in the steaming heat of South Africa's lowveld. The 28-year-old admits he did not realise the biggest year of his career would tire him out so much.

"The Open win has definitely sunk in, I've been feeling drained for the last five months," he says.

"The year is getting very long, I had a very difficult schedule with the Sunshine Tour at the end too. You want to do everything, but it's tough being mentally tired. It makes it difficult to play well, it gets to you in the end," Oosthuizen told Reuters in an interview on Friday during the Alfred Dunhill Championship.

The South African endured a disappointing end to his breakthrough season, tearing ankle ligaments while on a hunting trip and missing seven weeks as the European Tour reached its climax. He returned in time for the finale, the Dubai World Championship, and finished 13th to claim 10th spot in the Race to Dubai.

"It was frustrating, but it was also a good time to get off, spend some time with the family and think about what I'd achieved," Oosthuizen, the father of an 11-month-old daughter, said.

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