Doha: South Africa's Retief Goosen celebrated his 42nd birthday in style yesterday by taking a slim early lead in the Commercialbank Qatar Masters, presented by Dolphin Energy at Doha Golf Club.
While biting winds of up to 50kmph blew away the early chances of many of the star names on display in the third leg of The European Tour's famed Desert Swing, Goosen was calmness personified as he opened with a three under par 69 to take a one-shot lead on a day when just seven players shot under par.
Tough conditions
"It was tough out there today," said Goosen, whose last Tour win was in the same tournament back in 2007.
"I drove it nicely off the tee, so I hit a lot of shots off the fairway. But it was tough to get it close to the flags because of the windy conditions. Putting wasn't easy as you're getting blown all over the place, so it's tough. It's not a bad birthday present — I was born in 1969 and I shot a 69 so it's a good opening score on a tough day."
Considered the toughest of the four Middle East European Tour events, the Doha course again bared its teeth as the biting desert winds played havoc with the scorecards.
