Dan Bradbury on European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald's radar after Joburg Open win and strong start in Abu Dhabi

But that is exactly who sought Dan Bradbury out in Abu Dhabi this week.

Luke Donald - fresh from a Hero Cup assignment last week in which he got to run the rule over a host of contenders for a European team that will try to wrest the Ryder Cup back from American clutches in Italy later this year – made a beeline for Bradbury in the locker room.

"Luke came over to congratulate me, that was a big one, with him being the Ryder Cup captain,” said Bradbury, who came to Donald, and all of European golf’s attention, with his stunning win at the Joburg Open at the end of November, in only his third start on the DP World Tour and fifth month as a professional.

"If I’m in his good books then I’m doing all right.”

"And then I played with Thomas Bjorn and walking down the first fairway he put his arm around me, we had a little joke and he said ‘that win was life-changing’. Little things like that are really nice.”

A wire-to-wire victory at the Joburg Open was indeed life-changing for the 23-year-old from Wakefield on a professional level.

Overnight he went from not knowing where he would be playing the following week to having playing privileges on the DP World Tour for the next two years.

"It’s a fantastic platform,” he tells The Yorkshire Post. "It can still be stressful but it’s a weight off my shoulders, that’s the biggest thing everyone worries about is the playing rights.

"And now I can play every tournament between now and the end of next season.”

But he is determined that life off the course does not change too much.

"I don’t really want it to. I can now plan things whereas I couldn’t have before,” he said. “Wakefield Golf Club have been great. When I got home they gave me honorary membership which was very nice.

"A lot of people came up to congratulate me. I’m recognised now which is the biggest difference.

"People in the locker room here are recognising me, which is a really nice feeling. But in terms of off the golf course, life’s not really changed.”

Keep playing as well as he is, however, and he might soon find he has no choice about what happens off the course.

For on Friday, Bradbury shot a 67 in the second round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, one of the higher-profile events on the DP World Tour (formerly European Tour).

When he teed off in Johannesburg seven weeks ago, competing in a field of this calibre was something he could only dream of.

Now he is five shots off a lead jointly held by former Open champion Francesco Molinari, tied on five under with the likes of Donald and English Ryder Cup player Tyrell Hatton.

"I could play these tournaments every week,” says Bradbury, who has now made five cuts in a row. "This is where you want to be. It’s a stacked leaderboard, no one is running away with it, so if anyone has two pretty solid days then they’ll put themselves right up there.

"First day I didn’t score well, both my bogeys were three putts which was frustrating, and the birdies didn’t drop.

"And then today the birdie putts dropped and I didn’t have any stupid three-putts.

"I just need to keep doing what I have been doing, keep it in play around here because the fairways are so short and so firm, which makes it not play that long.”

Whatever happens this weekend, the tournament marks the start of a busy period for Bradbury who heads off to the Dubai Desert Classic next week, the Ras Al Khaimah Championship the week after and then on to tournaments in Singapore and Thailand.

It could be a hectic schedule, but with his playing status secured and time on his side, he can afford to experiment a little.

"I’ve never done five in a row before, I’m just trialling it, seeing if I can do it,” he says. “Most guys will do four of the five, but I’m planning for five, see how we get on.

"You want to make the most of it but there’s no point going to a tournament when you’re tired and wanting to be back home. You do hear that from guys. If that’s the case it’s not worth being there.”

Molinari, who was unbeaten in captaining Continental Europe at the Hero Cup last week, signed for a second consecutive 67 and was joined at the top of the leaderboard by compatriot Guido Migliozzi, who birdied his final three holes to return a 69.