Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Each-Way Tips: Coetzee's record in Qatar gently reaps

Matt Cooper
21 March 2022
4:00 min read

Coetzee will be happy about the return to Doha GC.

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The DP World Tour returns to Doha GC this for the Qatar Masters and Matt Cooper has three selections with the Betfair Sportsbook paying seven places...

"In eight visits to Doha GC he’s only twice finished T12th or worse."
George Coetzee 1.5pt each-way @ 19.018/1

Main Bet: George Coetzee 1.5pt each-way @ 18/1

I'm pretty sure I won't be alone in welcoming this week's return of the Qatar Masters to its old home at the Doha Golf Club.

It proved a popular spot for 22 editions of the tournament until a brief re-location in 2020 and 2021.

Education City - the title of the replacement venue - always came across as a little chilling to my eyes and ears, sounding like the name of some sort of correctional facility in a dystopian future.

A curious detail is that I once played 18 holes with a couple of fellows in charge of the place and they explained that it had been built with the Qatar World Cup in mind which didn't really do much to alter my confused way of thinking about it.

With the exception of his second round there last year, South Africa's George Coetzee took to Education City, finishing tied seventh on debut (after a slow start) and opening with a 67 for T10th 12 months later before a 78 on Friday saw him leave early.

Memories of that last lap will probably only serve to heighten his enthusiasm for heading back to the original venue because down the years he has been absolutely superb there.

In fact, in eight visits to Doha GC he's only twice finished T12th or worse.

On debut in 2012 he was T35th, and even then T10th after round one.

He was also tied second in 2013, tied second again in 2019, tied fifth in 2014, tied seventh in 2016, tied eighth in 2018 and T12th in 2015.

At Doha alone he has been in the places four times in eight, in Qatar that is five in 10 - and he has been inside the top 10 at some point before the cut in eight of those 10 starts in the country.

To all those good vibes we can add decent form.

He was T27th at the Ras al Khaimah Championship, improved to tied ninth on the same course a week later in the Ras al Khaimah Classic, tied fourth in the MyGolfLife Open two weeks ago and T25th last week in the Steyn City Championship (when fifth after 18 holes).

A short price? Yes, but when a course tickles Coetzee's fancy he does tend to perform very well again and again. For example, he has seven top 25s in nine starts at Dom Pedro and was 2-for-2 at landing top 10s at Gleneagles.

He has nothing to fear in this field and the course should put a broad smile on the face of this five-time DP World Tour winner.

Next Best: Marcus Kinhult 1pt each-way @ 40/1

In its first venture as a tournament venue Doha was always very fruitful for links specialists and also a wonderful pointer towards fellows who might thrive at the Open.

On the one hand, it seems a little absurd to connect a modern course in the Middle Eastern desert and the classic layouts beside the British and Irish seaside.

But Doha GC has always been blustery and having the capacity to shape shots links-style is an asset. I once asked Paul Lawrie about it and he said: "It plays like a links course where you have to be in control of your ball flight and sometimes run shots into greens instead of flying it all the way."

The Scotsman was a two-time winner there (including the year of his Open triumph). Other links fans who won at Doha include Adam Scott (who should have won the Open), Chris Wood, Thomas Bjorn and Sergio Garcia (who all nearly did), and Ernie Els (who did), plus Branden Grace (who owns the Open's record low score) and Eddie Pepperell (who is a very fine seaside performer).

That leads the eye toward the Swede Marcus Kinhult who landed a Nordic League win in February ahead of finishing tied eighth at the Kenya Open.

marcus kinhult kenya 2022.jpg

On his debut at Doha back in 2018 he broke 70 in all four rounds on his way to tied third (and he was also tied seventh at Education City in 2020).

A winner at Royal Lytham in the amateur ranks, he returned to the north-west of coast of England to land his first DP World Tour title in the British Masters at Hillside.

He's also finished tied sixth in the Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club and second at another blustery and linksy Middle East venue - Al Mouj in Oman.

Final bet: Jack Senior 0.5pt each-way @ 100/1

This might be a great spot for Jack Senior to kick on.

On the one hand, the linksy nature plays right into his hands.

The Englishman was a gun amateur back in the day - another winner of the Lytham Trophy no less, as well as a strong performer in the Walker Cup at Royal Aberdeen - and the sound of waves crashing into the shore has proved inspirational ever since.

He's a four-time qualifier for the Open and the only halfway lead of his DP World Tour career came at last year's Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club.

The problem is that in that latter performance he got a bit ratty when his amateur days were dragged up - his point being that they are over 10 years ago now.

The danger of those memories being revived by the media are far less in the Middle East and he might not have played Doha but he has decent memories of the tournament.

He was tied seventh after 54 holes in 2020 and tied second at the same stage last year. On a course that will suit him even better, he could last all four laps this year.

He's not been seen yet this season so we have a nice juicy price, but he did end 2021 in good nick with tied sixth in Madrid and tied seventh in Mallorca.

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