The European Tour stays in the desert this week as Jeunghun Wang of South Korea prepares to defend his title in the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.
Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Leaderboard, Preview, TV Times
The European Tour remains in the Middle East this week for the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters at Doha Golf Club. Major champions Darren Clarke and Paul Lawrie are among the star names on the entry list as are 2018 Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn, his vice-captain Robert Karlsson and Englishmen Chris Wood and Andy Sullivan.
Related: Qatar Masters golf betting tips
The first Qatar Masters was won by Andrew Coltart back in 1998. Since then the event has produced some notable champions. In 1999 Paul Lawrie was a winner here before going on to claim The Open Championship that summer at Carnoustie. He won again in 2012. Tony Johnstone secured his final European Tour victory here in 2001.
Tony Johnstone won in 2001
Adam Scott has twice been a winner, in 2002 then again in 2008. Swedish players have also enjoyed some success at Doha – Joakim Haegmann won the event in 2004, Henrik Stenson lifted the trophy in 2006 while Robert Karlsson triumphed in 2010. Chris Wood won in 2013 and Sergio Garcia in 2014. Branden Grace won back-to-back in 2015 and 2016 and, last year, Jeunghun Wang of South Korea came through a playoff against Joakim Lagergren and Jaco Van Zyl.
Jeunghun Wang won the event last year in a playoff
Wang is back to defend his title in the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters but he will face strong competition from a field that includes last week’s runner-up in Oman Chris Wood, two-time winner on this year’s European Tour Shubhankar Sharma, the ever-consistent Andy Sullivan and the talented Dane Thorbjorn Olesen.
Like many of the courses in this part of the world, the layout at Doha GC is a Peter Harradine design. Opened for play in 1994, water comes into play on six holes and natural outcrops of rock are also a feature.
The weather looks pretty reasonable although there could be a few showers around. It could also be a little breezy which might add to the challenge.
Venue: Doha GC, Doha, Qatar
Date: Feb 22-25
Course stats: par 72, 7,400 yards
Purse: €1,410,000
Defending champion: Jeunghun Wang (-16)
How to watch the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters
TV Coverage:
Thursday 22 – Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event from 7.30am
Friday 23 – Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event from 7.30am
Saturday 24 – Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event from 9am
Sunday 25 – Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event from 9am
Not a Sky Sports customer and want to watch the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters?
Why not buy a Now TV pass? For £7.99 you can get a day pass if you wish to watch one of the rounds or, for just £12.99, you can get a week pass to see the whole tournament.
Buy a Now TV Sky Sports Day Pass for £7.99
Buy a Now TV Sky Sports Week Pass for £12.99
Players to watch:
Chris Wood – The Englishman is a past winner of this tournament, back in 2013. He also comes into the event on the back of a strong showing last week in Oman where he finished alone in second.
Julian Suri – The American was tied second on his last European Tour start in the Hong Kong Open last November, and he had top-10s in three of four starts immediately prior to that. He’ll likely contend again this week.
Jeunghun Wang – The defending champion has played well in the Middle East this year. He was tied 15th in Abu Dhabi, tied sixth in Dubai and tied 26th in Oman last week.
Key hole: 16th. At just 307 yards it’s eminently driveable for most players in the field. But, it’s a small and awkward target with a large rock guarding the front of the green. Expect to see some unpredictable bounces off that outcrop as players go for the carry and fall just short.
Skills required: Finishing strongly. The last three holes are: A driveable par 4, a short par 3 then a reachable par 5. The 16th generally ranks the easiest hole on the course and the 18th the second easiest.
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