Earlier this year, Nicolas Colsaerts was hardly known by his current European Team members let alone this week’s USA Team rivals.

Of all the 24 players competing this week at Medinah, the 29-year Belgium born Colseats is probably the least known.

www.golfbytourmiss.com revealed some weeks ago the influence of his grandmother, father and his college lecturer in his personal development but he arrived in Chicago a virtual unknown to the American Team and American golf fans.

Nicolas Colsaerts believes he can be Europe’s second weapon at this week’s Ryder Cup. (Photo – Eoin Clarke/www.golffile.ie)

However Colsaerts revealed he is prepared to draw on his no frills inclusion into the European Team this week in Medinah.

“When you look back and you see where I was three years ago, I’m just the perfect example that if you want something really bad and you put your work into it, if you’ve got the heart and the passion, anything is achievable,” he said.

“It’s funny, because I thought about it, I don’t know if it was last night or this morning; it’s almost like I feel like I’ve come back from the dead, which is a bit of a weapon.

“We all go through different phases in our lives, especially when you’re an athlete. You don’t really have a lot of examples that everything goes according to plan. I’m certainly not one of them, but I’m kind of proud of my story.”

Colsaerts was introduced to the game at age six when his grandmother presented him with a set of golf clubs.

By age 12, Colsaerts was down to a 12 handicap and then when he turned pro in 2000 he was playing of +five.

Colsaerts got a first taste of team competition when he was selected to be a member of the 1997 and 1999 European Junior Ryder Cup side.

In recent months much has been written about how Colsaerts turned around his career when working on his game over the northern winter at the Brookwater Club in suburban Brisbane, Australia.

He spoke in Medinah again a bout the low point in his career.

“It’s pretty difficult when you’re 25 and you know you still have a lot of years in front of you and you just don’t really produce anything that’s going to get you there as it’s difficult to accept,” he said.

“But like I said, everybody has different paths and everyone has different careers. You’re going through this growing as a man sort of thing and you realise you want to be what you always dreamed of, so you’ve got to put your work into it, you’ve got to put your heart into it, and after that you become a man.”

However while Colsaerts arrived in Chicago as the lessor known of the dozen Europeans there is one aspect of his game that proceeded him to the Windy City and that’s his enormous length off the tee.

But then Colsaerts believes that those travelling to Medinah should not just look upon the Belgium for his length off the tee.

“There are other things in my game,” he declared.

“I don’t think I should be the only one looked at as using my length as an advantage. We have got a couple other dudes that can hit it a long way, you’ve got Rory; you’ve got (Lee) Westwood; Sergio (Garcia) is a fantastic driver of the ball.

“Most of the par fives everybody is going to get up in two. There are a lot of tees where the Americans played from forward tees, so it made sense to us that it’s going to be a pretty spectacular event.”