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99 pro and amateur players to contest for spots in Qatar Masters
Tribune News Network
DOHA
The toughest ever field, featuring World No. 377 Romain Langasque and twice former European Tour winner Simon Khan, will take to Doha Golf Club greens for the upcoming Qatar Open Amateur Golf Championship.
The three-day WAGR-recognised event, organised by the Qatar Golf Association, is scheduled from January 25, with 99 players attempting to claim the title and an automatic qualifying spot for the prestigious Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.
The 22-year-old French Langasque, who was tied for 65th in the 2015 Open championship and followed it with a joint 39th spot in the Masters Tournament next year, headlines the 11 Pro players list.
Twice 25th as his best ranking on the European Order of Merit, the 45-year-old British has had two European Tour wins to his credit - 2004 Celtic Manor Wales Open and 2010 BMW PGA Championship.
Khan's best in 12 Qatar Masters appearances was a tied sixth spot in the 2013 edition. In the same year, he managed to share the runner-up spot in the BMW PGA Championship with Marc Warren of Scotland behind Italian Matteo Manassero. Though after that he regularly played the game, he could not perform up to his potential due to injuries as a result which, his career kept slumping.
Ranked 999th in the world now, Khan, whose last appearance in the Qatar Masters in 2016 when he failed to make the cut, will have another go to get back to his old self.
Other professionals in the Qatar Open with world rankings include German Sean Einhaus (1068th), Spanish Carlos Del Moral (1077th), Italian Michele Cea (1553rd) and English Jean Michel Hall (1929th).
Also defending champion Pierre Verlaar of the Netherlands will be back to have another shot at the title and the qualifying spot.
Due to current political crisis, many players from Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have not entered this year. Or the entry list would have had about 125 players easily.
At a press conference on Monday, Qatar Golf Association Executive Director Mohamed al Naimi said this was the best-ever field for the Qatar Open.
"The standard of the Qatar Open has been rising. This year, we'll have a tough competition not only among the professionals but also among the Qataris for the available spots in the Qatar Masters," he commented.
There are about 20 to 25 players with one or better handicaps, which shows the depth of the non-professional and Qatari players. The spotlight will be on Ali al Shahrani, Abdulrahman Abdulla al Shahrani, Saleh al Kaabi, Abdulaziz al Boainin and Jeham al Kuwari who are with the lowest handicaps among the 11 Qatari players.
Kuwari has already won a tournament at the Doha Golf Club and is likely to make it tough for Abdulrahman, Saleh and Ali, who have been qualifying for the Qatar Masters for some years.
Others present during the press conference included Qatar Golf Association Assistant Secretary-General Mohammed al Muhanadi, Saeed al Hajri, Adil Khaloufi (both from Royal Air Maroc), and representatives of InterContinental Doha Hotel and Al Muftah Rent a Car.
Muhanadi welcomed new sponsor Royal Air Maroc, the official airline of Morocco. RAM will sponsor three events this season in Doha, as disclosed by Khaloufi, the Country Manager."We're delighted to be partnering with the QGA for the Doha Open. It is a reputed event and we've signed to sponsor two other events in Qatar as well.
"The Doha Open and the QGA Cup, the season-ending event for the QGA, are the two events which we will be supporting. Also we've plans to sponsor a series of golf events just as we've been doing in cycling through RAM League. We want to thank the QGA authorities for giving us a chance to be associated with golf," added Khaloufi.
Other sponsors and supporters of the Qatar Open are InterContinental Doha, Al Muftah Rent a Car, Alkalive Water, Doha Golf Club, Qatar Olympic Committee and Qatar Golf Association.
