Thomas Bjorn could be back in Europe's Ryder Cup team after a 10-year gap this September - and it is all down to rediscovering his passion for golf.

Bjorn, who began the defence of his Commercialbank Qatar Masters title on Thursday, won three times last season and on Sunday in Abu Dhabi tied for third with Tiger Woods and Graeme McDowell.

"I went through a spell of maybe not finding golf all that much fun any more," the 40-year-old Dane said.

"There was maybe a little bit of falling out of love with the game and the travelling and I started focusing a little bit on other stuff off the golf course.

"I made a decision two years ago that if I was going to play this game I wanted to be able to be competitive and play with the best players in the world.

"To do that I had to totally refocus myself on golf. I promised myself that I was going to have a good finish to my career.

"I could have quite a few years ahead of me, but I'm certainly going to try to enjoy them and make the most of them.

"I think that recommitment kind of made me competitive again. It made me the player that I probably really want to be.

"Through a long career sometimes you just lose your track a little bit of what you're really trying to do."

Bjorn's 2011 also included beating Woods at the Accenture World Match Play and leading The Open on his return to Sandwich, the course where he lost in 2003 after being three shots clear with four to play.

It has been a real rollercoaster ride since his last Ryder Cup appearance at The Belfry in 2002.

He served as a vice-captain to Bernhard Langer and Colin Montgomerie, but in between was involved in an almighty row with 2006 captain Ian Woosnam after not being given a wild card.

Bjorn is now chairman of the players' committee that appoints the Ryder Cup captain and is seen as a candidate for the job himself - most likely at Hazeltine in 2016, when he will be 45.

Jose Maria Olazabal, 46 this coming Sunday, will be in charge in Chicago this year and favourite for Gleneagles in 2014 is Ireland's Paul McGinley, who turned 45 in December.