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Who will be master in Qatar?

Author: Brandon Barker
Date: 28/01/2010
Golf betting

The Qatar Masters swings into action on Thursday from the Doha Golf Club, with a handsome prize fund of 2,500,000 US Dollars up for grabs.

Part of the European and Asian PGA tours schedule, the competition will kick off with Spanish star Alvaro Quiros looking to defend the crown he claimed last year.

Four rounds of top class golf will be witnessed with the event coming to a close on Sunday January 31.

Last week's Abu Dhabi Golf Championship winner Martin Kaymer has shot up the world rankings to number six and he will be looking to see his stock rise further with a solid performance in the Gulf state.

The 25-year-old German entered his first event of the new season and he shot a fantastic 21 under par to see off the field and he has been installed as the sportsbook favourite to be the 2010 Race To Dubai winner.

Ian Poulter, who finished behind him in the United Arab Emirates, will also feature and he will be hoping to go one better after his own excellent performance.

He said: "It's a nice start to the season. If you're going to take the positives out of that, I'm pretty frustrated that I've walked away from shooting that score and I haven't won.

"But it's good. I will move on next week in Qatar, have a bit of fun and see if I can go one step closer."

The competition first featured on the tour in 1998 with Scotland's Andrew Coltart walking away with the inaugural title.

Adam Scott, Ernie Els, Henrik Stenson and Retief Goosen head the illustrious list of past winners, with Australian Scott the only man to be able to boast two wins.

He claimed the titles in 2002 and 2008.

The challenging desert-type Championship Course, measured at 7,374 yards from the tournament tees, was designed by Peter Harradine, one of the world's leading golf course architects.

It will be the sixth tournament of the new European Tour season which has started in explosive fashion.

The Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek, South Africa was won by Spain's Pablo Martin with Scottish star Richie Ramsay grabbing glory at the South African Open Championship.

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South African Charl Schwartzel then notched back-to-back successes in his homeland with wins at the Africa Open and the Joburg Open before Kaymer's sterling effort last week.

Schwartzel currently leads the European Tour Race To Dubai at this early stage of the season with winnings of 488,850euros with Kaymer collecting 250,000euros in his first outing this term.

England's Lee Westwood, last season's Race To Dubai victor, heads the field and will be the highest ranked player to feature.

Paul Casey, Kenny Perry and Sergio Garcia will also be on show in the star-studded line-up.

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