Dubai: Zane Scotland is in no mood to tamper with his winning formula as he contemplates another solid start to the Mena Golf Tour when it travels to the Maghreb for the opening two events of 2014 in Morocco later this month.
Playing with “no expectations” worked wonders for the Englishman who led from start to finish to win the Royal Dar Es Salam Open, the inaugural event on the 2013 Tour schedule, by a good five shots and followed it up with a runner-up place at the Royal D’Anfra Open in Mohammedia, setting the early tone for the season he capped with the Order of Merit title.
With six wins, including four in 2013 under his belt since the inception of the tour in 2011, Scotland may be the most decorated player, but he is well aware that his previous success will have little bearing on this edition of the tour.
“What has happened is history. This is a different year. You’ve got to play well and execute your shots and see how things pan out,” said Scotland ahead of the Royal D’Anfra Open, the opening event of the tour this season, starting on March 17.
“Last year, I went to Morocco with no expectations and the mindset is the same this time around. Of course, I have a lot of good memories from last year and enjoyed playing on golf courses in both the cities, even though the weather wasn’t all that great with frequent spells of rain and thundershowers,” said Scotland, who is also a golf in DUBAi ambassador.
“I am not thinking too much in terms of results. The idea is to stay calm and take things as they come,” said Scotland who finished runner-up to experienced Stephen Dodd after a three-way playoff, also involving England’s Ian Keenan, in Mohammedia last year.
“The golf course in Mohammedia is quite challenging. If you’re hitting from off the fairway you’ll find it difficult to make the green. Generally, the middle of the green is the right place because the greens are small and firm and you don’t need to do a lot to get close,” the 31-year-old Englishman said.
“There are many good players on the Tour and anyone can have a good day at work, but I think the Moroccans would do well here because their local knowledge, which will be quite handy on this course,” said Scotland, once hailed as the next Tiger Woods when he won a nationwide competition, titled Search For A Tiger, aged 14.
“I have had a pretty good break and looking forward to the challenge ahead,” said Scotland, who emerged a runaway winner in the tour’s opening event in Rabat last year.
Tied for the lead on six-under with Welsh ace Dodd, Scotland closed with a four-under 69 to win the tournament by five shots ahead from Morocco’s Younes Al Hassani.
Held under the auspices of the Shaikh Maktoum Golf Foundation, the 2014 Mena Golf Tour features 10 events spread across five countries in the region. After back-to-back events in Morocco, the schedule resumes in mid-September with the eight-week Gulf Swing, which includes four stops in the UAE and one each in Qatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia before returning to the UAE for the season-ending Tour championship in November at Al Ain Al Ain Equestrian Shooting and Golf Club.
With each event boasting a prize fund of $50,000 and the Tour Championship carrying $75,000 (Dh275,482) in prize money, a total of $525,000 will be up for grabs for members of the tour, which is supported by Omega and Mercedes-Benz.
