Alejandro del Rey (-3), winner two weeks ago in Ras al Khaimah, has quickly moved up in the CommercialBank Qatar Masters. The Madrid golfer has delivered a card of 69 strokes and is three behind the leader, the Dane Rasmus Neergaard Petersen (-6). The wind is making its presence felt on this first day of the tournament and is reflected in some restrained results. It’s not exactly a massacre, far from it, but anything under par must be considered very positive. At times it blew very strongly in the morning, while the afternoon is being somewhat more lenient.
Del Rey has marked a brilliant debut, despite not being able to take advantage of one of his specialties. We’re talking about the par 5s. He made four pars, even though on three occasions he was perfectly positioned on the fairway. There are two explanations for this. The first is that the par 5s in Doha are no pushover. In fact, the three times Alex was on the fairway, he couldn’t reach the green in two… And we’re talking about one of the longest hitters on the European circuit. The only par 5 where he did go for it was the 10th, although he was in the left rough.
Del Rey has been on the DP World Tour for over two years as one of the best in average strokes on par 5s. Last year, for instance, he finished among the top 30 in this category, with an average of 4.58 strokes per par 5 played. Today, however, he made his three under par without the help of the long holes. His round was built on a great stretch of golf from the 14th to the 17th. He started on the 10th, and the initial feelings weren’t very positive. He missed some shots to the left, which particularly bother him, but he managed to hold on, resisted, and signed three very good birdies on the 14th, 16th, and 17th. The last two with good putts.
Precisely, the putter was one of the best clubs in the bag, despite what happened on the 4th hole might suggest otherwise. There, he made three putts from less than two metres. He had a great opportunity to go four under par and, instead, came out with an extra stroke. Beyond this mishap, he made very good long putts considering it wasn’t easy with the wind. The best part is that the mistake on the 4th didn’t affect him, and he ended up playing well, with a great birdie on the 7th, leaving it very close to the green on this short par 4. Alex remains very comfortable with his game. He didn’t even give much importance to the missed cut in Bahrain. Simply put, the putt didn’t accompany him, the short game wasn’t particularly sharp, and he paid dearly for falling into the bad turn of the tournament. One more week, he’s back at the top, and it’s unlikely the par 5s will repeat… Pure statistics.
A good start also for Iván Cantero (-1). Solid. With two birdies, one very good to finish on the 9th, and a bogey. Maintaining the good line of play and patience, despite it being the fourth consecutive week of competition. He seeks his eighth consecutive cut on the DP World Tour, an absolute record in his career. So far, he’s on the right track, although he needs to keep pushing tomorrow. A good start as well for Manu Elvira (PAR), although his taste will be somewhat bitter, as he managed to get to two under par and finished with a painful double bogey on the 17th.
Lastly, regarding the morning, poor rounds from Joel Moscatel (+3), Rafa Cabrera Bello (+5), and Albert Boneta (+5). They need to achieve a very low score tomorrow.
As for the lead, Neergaard Petersen, who has missed the last two cuts in Ras al Khaimah and Bahrain, has a one-stroke advantage over Andrea Pavan (-5) and two over Darren Fichardt (-4) and Oliver Lindell (-4).
