The Punter 
/ Steven Rawlings / 31 January 2012 / Leave a Comment 
Thomas Bjorn, looking to double up at Doha
“The forecast suggests an early start on Thursday could be a distinct advantage, so if you haven’t played yet, make sure you bear that in mind.”
It's going to be a blustery week in Qatar, so who has the best draw? And what does it take to win around Doha? Read Steve's event preview here...
Tournament
This will be the 15th staging of the Commercialbank Qatar Masters, the middle leg of the Race to Dubai's Middle East swing.
Venue
Doha Golf Club, Qatar
Course Details
Par 72, 7388 yards. Like last week's venue, Doha was also designed by Peter Harradine. Punter's may want to keep a close eye on the weather forecast, the wind plays a big part in the outcome of the tournament and those drawn in the afternoon on day one last year were severely hampered. Runner-up, Alvaro Quiros, playing in the very worst of the winds and was five over par at one stage on day one. I'd shown my hand before the draw was made and I've one pick with a good draw and one with a poor one, but the forecast suggests an early start on Thursday could be a distinct advantage, so if you haven't played yet, make sure you bear that in mind. The rough is even less penal this year because of the forecast windy conditions.
Useful Sites
http://www.weather-forecast.com/locations/Doha/forecasts/latest
TV Coverage
Live on Sky Sports all four days - starting 7.00am Thursday and Friday, 9.30am Saturday and 8.30am on Sunday
Last five winners
2011 - Thomas Bjorn -14
2010 - Robert Karlsson -15
2009 - Alvaro Quiros -19
2008 - Adam Scott -20
2007 - Retief Goosen -15
Typical Winner
As is so often the case, the most important stat here is Greens In Regulation. Unlike last week, Driving Accuracy isn't crucial at all. The plan here is fairly simple, bang it a long way off the tee, find the green and get hot with the putter. Although only Adam Scott has been successful more than once here, the same players tend to contend and conversely, some players just don't seem to get it. Martin Kaymer's record is lamentable and Rory McIlroy hasn't been back after a couple of fruitless visits.
Market Leaders
Lee Westwood has a fine record at Doha without winning but he was carrying an injury last week and that's more than enough to put me off. Sergio Garcia also has bits and pieces of form here but he's plenty short enough for my liking. Graeme McDowell and Martin Kaymer are the next two in the list and of the two, I much prefer G-Mac. He didn't look miles off last week whereas Kaymer was awful. As previously stated, the German's record here is poor too.
Selections
I picked out Alvaro Quiros as a pick here at the end of last year. Put simply, he's a no-brainer bet, especially now he has an advantageous early start on Thursday. He won the event three years ago and he's finished runner-up in each of the last two years. He missed the cut last week but he's never got to grips with Abu Dhabi and I'm happy to dismiss that performance. Hopefully, it's given him the opportunity to blow away a bit of rust and us a chance to get a better price here. I'd have gladly taken [16.0] and was delighted to get on at an average of [19.5].
Last year's winner, Thomas Bjorn, hasn't looked back since success here, challenging hard at the Open Championship and winning a couple more times on the Race to Dubai. He won comfortably last year (four strokes) and played very well last week. For once, Thomas isn't overlooked in the market but I still wanted him onside. Unfortunately his afternoon draw on Thursday isn't anywhere near as favourable as Alvaro's morning one.
Qatar Masters Selections
Alvaro Quiros @ an average of [19.5]
Thomas Bjorn @ [26.0]
I'll be back later with a preview of the US Tour's event, the WM Phoenix Open, and I'll kick off the In-Play Blog on either Thursday or Friday.
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