Haunted by his near miss in his last Royal Sydney start and lamenting opportunities lost in 2016, Adam Scott is aiming to make amends at this week's Australian Open.
Scott led the Open for 71 holes after opening with a course-record 10-under-par 62 in 2013 only to bogey the last on Sunday to allow Rory McIlroy to lift the Stonehaven Cup.
Victory would have secured Scott Australian golf's Triple crown - successes in the Open, Masters and PGA events in the same season, a feat only ever achieved by Robert Allenby in 2005.
It would also have capped a glorious year highlighted by his landmark US Masters triumph at Augusta National.
Little wonder the Queenslander still rues what might have been the last time the Open was played at Royal Sydney.
"I certainly feel like I'd like to get a win here at Royal Sydney after what happened a few years ago. That burns a little," said world No.7 Scott ahead of Thursday's opening round.
Scott is also eager to turn a good year into a memorable one with a second national championship after being unable to convert hot early-season form, including two US tour wins in February-March, into a second major championship title.
"Obviously after having a great start to the year and winning two events in a row, and having a couple of second-place finishes before that, the expectations naturally go up for the year," Scott said.
"You think you're going to storm through and have a career year and a memorable year; but it didn't quite happen.
"I played really well but I think my short game let me down a little bit this year. Certainly that was the general feel for my game.
"But I still played at a fairly high standard. I racked up a lot of top 5s and 10s and stuff like that.
"But it was a bit lean on the wins after such a great start. It would have been great to keep the momentum rolling, at least for another couple of months and maybe contend a little better in the majors.
"That's kind of what my whole focus is, so I was a little disappointed with that, but my standard of golf is still high and I now just need to capitalise on that; hopefully here this week."
Scott's biggest threat at the 101st Open is likely to come from American superstar Jordan Spieth.
The dual major winner and former world No.1 has returned for a third straight year in search of a second Open trophy of his own, having triumphed at The Australian in 2014 and finished runner-up alongside Scott at the same venue last year.
Spieth, though, will be playing Royal Sydney for the first time, a factor Scott hopes gives him a vital edge.
"He's got a very mature head on his shoulders, so he'll figure it out," Scott said.
"But just having played here a fair bit over the years, I feel very comfortable. I might have a little bit of an advantage in that sense."
STATS THAT MATTER AHEAD OF THE AUSTRALIAN OPEN AT ROYAL SYDNEY GOLF CLUB STARTING ON THURSDAY:
Prize money: $1.25 million
Drawcards: Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, Geoff Ogilvy, Aaron Baddeley, Jhonattan Vegas
Former champions in field: Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, Geoff Ogilvy, Aaron Baddeley, Greg Chalmers, Robert Allenby, Peter Senior, Stephen Allan, Peter Lonard, Craig Parry.
Reigning champion: Matt Jones (not defending his title)
Course Record: 62 - Adam Scott during the first round of the 2013 Australian Open.
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