Tag: Scott Jamieson

Scott Jamieson, Sebastian Heisele tied for first round lead at Ras al Khaimah Championship

A topped iron shot was one of the highlights from round one.

Scott Jamieson and Sebastian Heisele each opened with a 7-under 65 to share the first-round lead at the DP World Tour’s Ras al Khaimah Championship in the United Arab Emirates.

After the past few events on the circuit – formerly branded as the European Tour – saw star-loaded fields, there were only two golfers inside the top 10 of the event’s first round who sit inside the top 100 in the Official World Golf Ranking.

Jamieson was bogey free in taking a share of the 18-hole lead. The 38-year-old Scottsman was in position to win a few weeks ago at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship but stumbled in the final round, eventually signing for 5 over and dropping to T-10.

“My iron play was good today, I actually didn’t drive it particularly well,” he said of his Thursday effort. “There’s not a great deal of rough, so I was able to still hit is reasonably close.”

Heisele, who also was bogey-free in the first round, ranks outside the top 600 in the Official World Golf Ranking and is looking for his first DP World Tour victory. The 33-year-old’s last start was in September 2021 at the Italian Open, where he missed the cut.

The moment of the round belonged to Rasmus Højgaard, who found an, let’s just say, unique way to find the putting surface from over 240 yards. He went on to shoot 69 and was tied for 17th.

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Watch: Blustering wind dominates field in Abu Dhabi before play suspended due to darkness

Intense wind made an even-par effort an incredible feat.

It’s not often that the weather absolutely dominates the field during a round of golf. Friday in Abu Dhabi was one of those days.

This week the DP World Tour is at Yas Links for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Scott Jamieson fired a first-round 9-under 63 and began the second 18 with a  one-shot lead over Viktor Hovland. Like many in the field, Jamieson went the wrong way Friday, signing for a 2-over 74. All in all, the second round effort was impressive and good enough to stay ahead of the pack — for now.

“It certainly wasn’t easy,” he said. “It’s so tricky, obviously hitting shots is tricky with all the gusts but the hardest thing is putting. You get over the ball and you feel like you’ve got to be so tense to stop everything moving but that’s the worst thing you can do when you’re trying to putt. I holed a lot of really good putts from inside five feet today which kept my score respectable.”

You may be asking: “Was it really that bad?” Take a look for yourself.

Hovland, like Jamieson, carded a 2-over 74 — 10 shots worse than his opening round effort. The Norwegian finished before darkness forced a suspension and will be in prime position heading into the weekend.

James Morrison, after starting the week with a 6-under 66, was through 14 holes when the horns blew. He currently stands at even par for his second round with a chance to earn the 36-hole lead with a solid finish Saturday morning.

Notable names in the field and where they stand:

Ian Poulter (T-2)
Shane Lowry (T-5)
Adam Scott (T-16)
Tyrrell Hatton (T-23)
Tommy Fleetwood (T-30)
Collin Morikawa (T-60)
Rory McIlroy (T-60)

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After two months off, DP World Tour back in action in Abu Dhabi

United Arab Emirates hosts the first of four consecutive events.

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The DP World Tour (formerly known as the European Tour) saw its 2021-22 season get off to rocky start.

The season-opening Joburg Open in November was rocked by the omnicron COVID outbreak and shortened to 36 holes. Then the next two events were canceled.

This week, the tour is back on track at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It’s the first of four straight events in the UAE and has drawn the likes of Rory McIlroy, Viktor Hovland, Ian Poulter, Tyrrell Hatton and Shane Lowry.

After the first round, though, it’s Scott Jamieson in the lead. His 9-under 63 set the pace after 18 holes.

“It’s eight weeks off from tournament golf out here so you’re always a little bit on edge probably to start off the day but birdie at the first kind of settled any edge there was and it was just really solid all day,” he said. “This is the first off-season I haven’t actually peeled the skin back and tried to figure out how to get better.”

Hovland shot a 64 and is a one back. Thomas Pieters is solo third after firing a 65. Defending champion Tyrrell Hatton, James Morrison, Ian Poulter, Takumi Kanaya and Victor Perez are all tied for fourth at 6 under. Rory McIlroy had four birdies but also four bogeys and shot even-par 72, good for a tie for 77th.

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