SIX-TIME European Tour title-winner Simon Dyson is “taking a step away from competitive golf” as he focuses on his new performance business.

The North Yorkshire golfer has set up Elite Golf Performance to help players with the mental and technical side of the game and believes that now is the “perfect time” to get stuck into the business.

Dyson's six Euro Tour titles - including a hat-trick of KLM Dutch Open wins, the Indonesian Open and the Alfred Dunhill Links at St Andrews - came alongside three Asian Tour successes at the turn of the century.

A stellar season in 2011 saw him rise to his best-ever world ranking of 28 before a wrist tendon injury in 2015 frustrated his attempts to keep challenging at the top.

He is, however, keen to emphasise that he is not hanging up his driver just yet.

“I wouldn’t say I’m retiring,” Dyson said, “just taking a step away from competitive golf. I’m never going to say I won’t play again because I might miss it.

“But I haven’t been playing very well since my wrist injury and I haven’t been enjoying my golf much.

“Over the last few years I’ve been doing my qualification. I was playing on the Challenge Tour and I learnt more while watching golfers and about how I can help them.

“I really didn’t enjoy (playing) last year and it made me realise I want to do something else.

“I’ve been working hard with a life coach in getting this all on track. She says there is no such thing as a coincidence - it’s all about timing, and I honestly feel this is the perfect time to do this.”

Dyson started his professional career on the Asian Tour in 2000, when he topped the Order of Merit after winning the Macau Open, the Volvo China Open and the Hong Kong Open.

Since 2001, he has featured mostly on the European Tour, with his Dutch Open wins coming in 2006, 2009 and 2011. He collected the Indonesian Open in 2006, the St Andrews victory came in 2009 and two years later he won the Irish Open.

Speaking about his plans for the performance business, Dyson said: “I want to help players of all standards achieve their full potential.

“This is about fitness, mobility and shot-making. So many people are very mechanical and I want to teach the art of shot-making and having more than just ‘swing’ in their game.

“I also want to teach the psychology side of it, on course management and visualisation – the whole package to be a very good golfer.

“I want to just grow it and see where it goes. The aim is for it to be as big as it can be and someday have academies across the world.”

Dyson can be found on Instagram with the handle @simondysongolf and on Twitter with @simondyson77.