Six years after claiming the prestigious Mother of Pearl trophy, European Tour Member Adam Scott will make a long-awaited return to Qatar when he lines up in the 2008 Commercialbank Qatar Masters at Doha Golf Club from January 24-27.
“It’s been a long time since I won in Qatar back in 2002 and a lot has happened to me since then but I am delighted to be heading back to Doha for the Commercialbank Qatar Masters,” said the 27 year-old Australian, currently Number Six on the Official World Golf Ranking.
For Scott it is a chance to get to grips once again with the challenging 7,374 yard Doha Golf Club where in 2002 he stunned the field with rounds of 67-66-69-67 for a 19 under par total of 269. It was a powerful performance that saw him win by six shots from England’s Nick Dougherty and Frenchman Jean Francois Remesy to claim his second title on The European Tour International Schedule.
Since then he has gone on to win some of golf’s biggest titles including the 2004 Players Championship at Sawgrass on the US PGA Tour in 2004.
“Adam Scott is without doubt one of the finest and most charismatic players in world golf,” said Andrew Stevens, Group CEO of tournament title sponsors Commercialbank. “He was absolutely sensational when he played and won in Qatar in 2002, despite some seriously windy conditions.
“Since then he has become a real international player with tournament victories in Singapore, Europe and the USA so it’s a real pleasure to have him agree to return to the scene of one of his first international victories.”
Sanctioned by The European Tour, the Commercialbank Qatar Masters – won in 2007 by Retief Goosen – will again enjoy a line-up featuring some of the biggest names in world golf.
But it is Scott’s return to the Gulf state that will further ignite an event hosted by the Qatar Golf Association (QGA) and the Qatar National Olympic Committee (QNOC).
“Playing the US, European and Australasian Tours has introduced me to so many incredible destinations and every year, I look forward to the places these tours will take me and the great challenges that lie ahead,” added Scott.. ”Doha is one of them - relaxing and always with great weather. Just the kind of place you’d go on a holiday. I haven’t been there for a few years but I do enjoy playing there. It’s a fascinating place.”
Scott’s confirmation that he will return to try and become the first man in the tournament’s history to win the title on more than one occasion was also welcome by Qatar Golf Association President Hassan Al Nuami. “Over the years, as this tournament has grown, we’ve seen how the world’s best players want to play in Doha,” he said. “This is a huge vote of confidence in both the tournament and Qatar.”
