The European Tour will shift to Doha, Qatar and the Doha Golf Club for the second leg of the Middle East trilogy in the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters this week. While this week’s event will not offer the same level of star quality that made their way to Abu Dhabi last week there is still a strong contingent that will be in action led by Alex Noren and Bernd Wiesberger.
Event
Event Details: Commercial Bank Qatar Masters
Category: European
Date: January 26-29
Location: Doha Golf Club, Doha, Qatar
The most notable absence will be that of Branden Grace, who won this tournament in each of the last two years. Grace dominated this tournament with a combined 33-under-par over his last two wins here and his decision not to compete this week should open the door for the sports betting favorites to challenge for the win.
Past Five Winners
2016: Branden Grace -14
2015: Branden Grace -19
2014: Sergio Garcia -16
2013: Chris Wood -18
2012: Paul Lawrie -15
What To Know About The Course
The lengthy roughs, desert sand and the eight artificial lakes that line the course will make this one of the tougher courses to compete on early on in terms of the European Tour schedule. While Driving Distance and Driving Accuracy will be important, the key stat to keep an eye on could be Putting statistics with an emphasis on consistency under pressure. The biggest challenge could end up being the blazing hot temperatures that these golfers will have to compete in as they attempt to stay cool and calm under pressure.
The Field
Noren is listed as the sports betting favorite in this year’s field at +1100 odds to win outright with Wiesberger right there behind him at +1100 odds. Veteran Martin Kaymer is expected to be in the mix as well as a +1400 option followed by Rafaeal Cabrera Bello and Tommy Fleetwood to round out the top-five options on the board according to the sports betting odds. Grace’s absence completely changes the perception of this year’s tournament and opens the door for a new champion in 2017.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Alex Noren over Bernd Wiesberger
With the door wide open for each of these sports betting favorites to contend for the win, we like Noren to have the edge over Wiesberger. Noren is coming off an incredible 2016 season that included four victories and a third-place finish in the Race to Dubai. Noren is now up to ninth in the world rankings and while Wiesberger should be in the mix as well we like Noren to have a slight edge in the head-to-head matchup with a very strong outing in Doha this week.
Top-Five Pick: Rafael Cabrera Bello
Cabrera Bello has been incredibly consistent on the European Tour for a long time so we like him to keep it up with a strong performance at this week’s Qatar Masters. Cabrera Bello seemed to be in just about every tournament he entered last season and his confidence will be sky-high heading in to this week. Cabrera Bello could be close to breaking through and while he might not finish first this week we like him to place in the top five at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.
Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Tee Times
| 7:00 | David LIPSKY | Niclas FASTH | |
| 7:10 | Alvaro QUIROS | Trevor IMMELMAN | Thomas BJØRN |
| 7:20 | Clarke LUTTON | Mike LORENZO-VERA | Bryson DECHAMBEAU (AM) |
| 7:30 | Marcus FRASER | Scott JAMIESON | Peter HANSON |
| 7:40 | Joachim B. HANSEN | Brett RUMFORD | Ashun WU |
| 7:50 | Lucas BJERREGAARD | Joakim LAGERGREN | Brandon STONE |
| 8:00 | Oliver WILSON | Mikko KORHONEN | Marcel SIEM |
| 8:10 | Jens FAHRBRING | Rhys DAVIES | Haydn PORTEOUS |
| 8:20 | Marc WARREN | Ben EVANS | Søren KJELDSEN |
| 8:40 | Andrew DODT | Kiradech APHIBARNRAT | Thomas PIETERS |
| 8:50 | Alex NOREN | Maximilian KIEFFER | Björn ÅKESSON |
| 9:00 | Robert KARLSSON | James MORRISON | Alejandro CAÑIZARES |
| 9:10 | Gary STAL | Nathan HOLMAN | Cheng JIN (AM) |
| 9:20 | Roope KAKKO | Prom MEESAWAT | Renato PARATORE |
| 9:30 | Seve BENSON | Callum SHINKWIN | Benjamin HEBERT |
| 9:40 | Nicolas COLSAERTS | Kristoffer BROBERG | Joost LUITEN |
| 9:50 | Richie RAMSAY | Trevor FISHER JNR | Thongchai JAIDEE |
| 10:00 | Sergio GARCIA | Jorge CAMPILLO | George COETZEE |
| 10:10 | Ernie ELS | Tyrrell HATTON | Mikko ILONEN |
| 10:30 | Pablo LARRAZÁBAL | Robert ROCK | Louis OOSTHUIZEN |
| 10:40 | Johan CARLSSON | Bradley DREDGE | Bernd WIESBERGER |
| 10:50 | Grégory HAVRET | Richard BLAND | Ricardo GOUVEIA |
| 11:00 | Pelle EDBERG | Andrew JOHNSTON | Grégory BOURDY |
| 11:10 | Lee SLATTERY | Tommy FLEETWOOD | Rafa CABRERA-BELLO |
| 11:20 | Paul LAWRIE | Thorbjørn OLESEN | Branden GRACE |
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