Jorge Campillo is ready to tread new ground this week as he defends a European Tour title for the first time in his career at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters. The Spaniard recorded his second European Tour win when he defeated Scotland’s David Drysdale in a thrilling five-hole play-off at Education City Golf Club last season - holing three putts from more than 20 feet on the extra holes. The 34-year-old was unable to defend the Trophée Hassan II trophy he won in 2019 after the tournament was cancelled last year due to the global coronavirus pandemic, with the 2020 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters proving to be the final European Tour event before the enforced hiatus. Former champions Darren Fichardt, Justin Harding and Eddie Pepperell are also teeing it up in Doha this week, as are 2016 Ryder Cup players Thomas Pieters and Andy Sullivan. Both Pieters and Sullivan have made encouraging starts to the 2021 Race to Dubai, with Sullivan finishing in a share of 25th at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, the first Rolex Series event of the year, while Pieters finished tenth at the Saudi International powered by Softbank Investment Advisers. The Belgian has also missed just two cuts in his last 28 European Tour starts. Rising star Rasmus Højgaard arrives in Qatar on the back of top ten finishes at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and Saudi International and from making his debut in a World Golf Championships event last month. Player Quotes Jorge Campillo: “It’s different (being defending champion), I’ve never been in this position before because the other tournament I won (Trophée Hassan II) I couldn’t defend it. It’s new for me. I have had most of the attention this week, but I’m fine with it. It’s nice to be the defending champion. “I’ve had a long time to think about the win. I was playing good and was ready to go to India to try and win another golf tournament, but that was stopped because of the pandemic. It was hard to come back after the break. “The play-off stands out the most. It was such a great play-off. Besides all the putts I made, I hit some good shots too. David played great and I was glad I made those putts to keep up in the play-off.” David Drysdale: “I’m still trying hard to win. That’s the main goal - the reason I practice and keep going. Last year here was a great opportunity, and those opportunities haven’t come along as much as I’d have liked in my career, but I’m trying to get in that position again. I know I can hit some good golf shots under pressure. The plan is to practice and give myself a chance to have a go on the back nine on Sunday. I’m going to have a go if I’m given an opportunity. “I won a couple of Challenge Tour events a while ago, but last year if it wasn’t for Jorge Campillo’s ridiculous putting I might have had one on the European Tour – hats off to him but I also hit a lot of good golf shots.”

Jeff Winther is targeting a maiden European Tour win after carding a second consecutive round of 67 to reach eight under par at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters. The Dane, who finished third at Education City Golf Club last season, made four birdies on the back nine to move two strokes clear of a group of five players on six under par, before play was suspended due to darkness on Friday evening. Jamie Donaldson, who represented Europe at The 2014 Ryder Cup, made the most of the benign conditions in the morning as he carded a three under par round of 68 to take a share of second place, while the afternoon starters battled gusts of up to 40 kilometres an hour. Joining the Welshman on six under par are former Qatar Masters champion Darren Fichardt of South Africa, American Kurt Kitayama, Kalle Samooja of Finland and England’s Jack Senior. Seven competitors share seventh place on five under par, including 2016 Ryder Cup player Thomas Pieters and Rolex Series winner Brandon Stone, with four groups to complete their second round from 7.30am on Saturday. Player Quotes Jeff Winther: “I love coming back here. I have good memories from last year even though two guys knocked me out. I really like this course – it’s great to play and the conditions are fantastic. I haven’t played for three weeks, but coming out here is fantastic. “The greens are very nice. I don’t want to jinx myself but I think they are easy to putt on. They are very true. The condition is the same as last year, it’s beautiful.” Darren Fichardt: “This morning we had to come back and play one hole, there was a small breeze. We sat in the clubhouse and waited for our 8:15 tee time. Midway through our front nine it started blowing a bit, then on the back nine it was blowing properly – it was tricky. “I was quite embarrassed on 17 when I de-greened it. That’s a good indication of how tricky it is. It’s tough to get the pace right because the wind is gusting. You’ll set your putt off on a good line or a good pace and the wind can carry it or stop it. I had two three-whacks on the back nine. I walked off and said to my wife it wasn’t like I was trying to do that. The wind just gusts and it’s difficult to judge the wind.” Kurt Kitayama: “It was playing really tough, the wind was really up – so it felt good though, getting under par. “Being in Las Vegas and seeing a lot of desert golf out there, there’s a similar feel here. I think that helps a lot. Usually this time of year it’s pretty windy, so I get to see quite a bit of wind – a lot of times it’s on my day off though. It’s pretty comparable. “(On the first) I chunked my approach and flew it into the bunker. I hit a good bunker shot and holed it, it was nice to get off that way – you’re looking at bogey really, so to come out with a birdie was a good start.”

Darren Fichardt will take a one stroke lead into the final round of the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters as he seeks a second victory in Doha. The South African, who won this event in 2003, carded a one under par 70 at Education City Golf Club in a round which included a double bogey and two further dropped shots as the field again battled howling winds in the Qatari capital. The five-time European Tour winner recovered from dropping three shots in just two holes on the 13th and 14th, with birdies on the 16th and 17th, to record a seven under par total after three rounds, one stroke ahead of England’s Jack Senior, who carded a level par 71. A two-time winner on the European Challenge Tour, Senior will go in search of a maiden European Tour victory on Sunday. India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar is third on five under par after a round of 68, while Frenchman Antoine Rozner made the biggest move on the leaderboard, rising 35 places after also recording a three under par round. Rozner shares fourth with Joachim B. Hansen of Denmark and Welshman Jamie Donaldson on four under par. Player Quotes Darren Fichardt: “When I started today I couldn’t get the pace right, the greens sped up significantly with the wind. I was three-whacking like it was going out of fashion, on every green. Luckily I figured my swing out on the range before I teed off. I said to my wife to give ourselves opportunities and to try and get our first putt past the hole. When they started dropping I started to get a nice rhythm and a nice flow. “Then I got to the par five 13 – that’s a hell of a par five, plus wind. I walked off there making a double and felt a bit out of sorts. I three-whacked the next green. I tried to gather my thoughts and realise it’s tough out there, everyone was struggling and to try and finish with a couple of pars coming home – luckily I got two birdies.” Jack Senior: “That was a battle from start to finish. I got off to a half-decent start, quite a quick start really. Then the wind started gusting on the back nine, you just had to hang on for dear life. “When we got on the 12th tee we looked at the wind direction, we hit a shot – I think I hit seven iron and pitched it 131 yards – it was really strong at that point. “I’ll just keep doing and what I can control. All I can do is control what I’m doing. The old saying is it’s one shot at a time but that’s all you’ve got to do. Go out there with a clear head tomorrow and give it my best shot.” Gaganjeet Bhullar: “I had a good start to the tournament, four under on day one was pretty solid. Yesterday I hit the ball pretty good and gave myself a lot of birdie opportunities. I made a few silly mistakes in the beginning, but played well on the back nine. That was the time when the wind picked up. I had a feeling of confidence that I could play well in the wind. “Today from the first hole it was gusting and howling pretty much the whole day. I hit the ball well and gave myself a lot of opportunities.