The circumstances are not ideal, but Lee Westwood hopes returning to the European Tour can reinvigorate his game and secure a 10th consecutive Ryder Cup appearance next year.

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Westwood has given up his PGA Tour membership as he goes through a divorce from his wife of 16 years Laurae, moving back to the UK from their home in Florida to be close to their two children.

The 42-year-old has slipped down the world rankings to his current position of 44th.

“I’ve dropped a lot in the world rankings this year, so I need to address that and play well and get myself in the top 50 so I’m in all the events over in the States,” Westwood said ahead of this week’s British Masters at Woburn.

“But I’ll play predominately the European Tour for personal reasons so I can be where I need to be.

“Living in the States, my game didn’t really sort of move in the direction I wanted it to, but obviously that’s not the reason I’m doing all this. I’ve always had priorities in life. I’ve always said golf is not my main priority, but obviously the kids are.”

Westwood first reached world No 1 in October 2010, and enjoyed a second spell at the top of rankings the following April. And although Westwood admits golf does not mean as much to him as it did five or 10 years ago, he insists he can get back to the upper echelons of the game.

“I don’t see any reason why not,” Westwood added. “Get my ducks in a row and I can focus on golf again. There’s no sort of magic wand you can ever wave. You just have to go back to basics and do the drills and the hard work on the range that makes you hit it straight and close.

“I’m prepared to work hard. I’m in pretty good shape. I’ve got 42-year-old niggles but the back is still in good shape and knees and hips and shoulders are all good. It’s just down to hard work, really.

“Unfortunately this year I’ve not really had time or been able to put into it, so it’s no surprise that the game has suffered a little bit. We know how mental the game of golf is, as well, so mentally a lot has been going on which has affected me.”