Richie Ramsay will tee it up for the fifth consecutive week on the European Tour as he looks to capitalise on his recent run of good form at the Porsche European Open.
The Scot, who is currently 20th in Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex, comes into the event in Germany having recently finished in a share of second at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open hosted by the Rory Foundation and tied 22nd in The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale last week.
Hosting a European Tour event for the first time, Green Eagle Golf Course near Hamburg is set to provide a long and demanding test measuring 7,582 yards and with pre-tournament rain having softened conditions, crowd favourite Marcel Siem is prepared to adapt his game in order to compete.
The 37 year old has been an ever-present on the circuit since 2002 and with a few tweaks to his game over recent months, the four-time European Tour winner is looking forward to the challenge posed by the long course, as well as receiving some home support from the German crowds.
Meanwhile, Joost Luiten is hoping to rediscover the consistency in his game that has already secured him five European Tour titles as he looks to better his best result of tied 30th at the event in 2015.
Player Quotes
Richie Ramsay
“It went so quick, a little bit of a blur. I just remember Friday was an incredible day, really tough conditions, my ball striking was great, the fans were incredible, and then you kind of think can it get better than this and then it did! Sunday was brilliant with the walk down 18, obviously with the stands being packed and the yellow leaderboards, and all of those things you see when you are a youngster on TV, you got to kind of live that and I said to someone that I effectively got to live the dream that week so it was great fun.
“It’s polar opposite from last week. A lot of drivers, probably quite a few long irons into the greens, so you are still going to have to be straight – it’s not all brute force – and there aren’t that many obvious birdie opportunities. So perseverance is going to be a word you hear a lot this week.
“This is my fifth week and the reason I’m playing is because I feel like I’m playing good. I just want to get out there and compete, and try to put a number together. Like you said a different course this week but I have taken yesterday off to relax and let the body rest and hopefully one more big week.”
Joost Luiten
“It was great. It was so busy, so many spectators and the atmosphere out on the golf course was unbelievable and the setup was really nice. Royal Birkdale is a great golf course and you know, it’s The Open, it’s special and it was very cool to play in it.
“It’s different you know, I think you might change something in the setup of the drive, you want to see a bit more flight on the ball and more carry, last week it was all about the flight down, so I’ll be looking at the setup this week. It’s a long golf course, you have to hit the fairways to have a chance to go into the greens so it’s a different game, but in the end you have to hit the greens and make the putts.
“Some rounds it’s there and then the next day it seems to be gone, so hopefully I can find a bit more consistency. Last week I had two good days and then the weekend I wasn’t there, and that’s been the story of the year really for me, so hopefully I can find four consistent days and be up there on Sunday.”
Marcel Siem
“It is very long, there are a few par fives, in fact one par five that actually plays as a par six if I look at the numbers on the paper but I think they have put the tee box forward, so it will be very long. It’s soft and I think it’s pretty wide, so it’s going to be a bombing festival this week, so I am going to go on the range later and get my driver a little higher and some more carry.
“I got my swing back, went back to my old coach and everything feels better but it just didn’t click. I had two top tens at smaller tournaments, unfortunately, I missed the cut by a shot in Ireland and two in Scotland, so it’s the first time I feel a little bit of pressure. I’m 126 in the Race to Dubai and I have to fight now.”
