Jose Maria Olazabal, the man who succeeded Colin Montgomerie as Europe's Ryder Cup captain, will add a vintage edge to the powerful line-up of young guns starring in this week's Commercialbank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy at Doha Golf Club.
Injury and illness have combined to keep 44 year-old Olazabal away from the sharp end of European Tour competition for the past few years but with a CV that includes 23 European Tour titles and seven appearances in The Ryder Cup – three of them on winning sides – the Spaniard was a unanimous choice as captain for 2012 in Medinah.
Olazabal is making a playing return to the Tour with four straight weeks on the Desert Swing his initial competitive target – including only his second Doha appearance in 14 years at the $2.5 million Commercialbank Qatar Masters from February 3-6.
"I'm going to put myself to the test and I will have a better idea where I stand after these four weeks," he said. "I will always try to be close to the players and hear what they have to say – we all know that you need to have a good relationship with the players so everyone feels comfortable and ready to play."
The Ryder Cup may be 20 months away but Olazabal is getting down to business straight away, which is good news for tournament organisers the Qatar Golf Association (QGA), the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) and Commercialbank.
"The last time Jose Maria played in Qatar was when we first staged the tournament back in 1998," said QGA President Hassan Al Nuaimi. "Since those early days we have grown massively and I am sure he is going to see a much different tournament when he plays this week."
The $2.5 million event is the third leg of the Desert Swing and will feature many of the game's biggest stars. Already confirmed are World Number One Lee Westwood, World Number Two Martin Kaymer, World Number Five Steve Stricker, World Number 11 Ian Poulter and defending champion Robert Karlsson, while in players like Olazabal, John Daly and Todd Hamilton the tournament also boasts a clutch of Major winners.
The second Spanish player – after Seve Ballesteros – to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, Olazabal tasted Major success twice with victory at The Masters in 1994 and 1999 and formed the most successful Ryder Cup partnership in the history of the competition when he and Ballesteros combined to win 11, halve two and lose just two of their matches together.
Chris Myers, Tournament Manager and General Manager of the host Doha Golf Club, believes Olazabal will prove just as popular as the men 20 years his junior when he returns to a venue where he finished in 17th place on his only other appearance.
"Ollie is a Ryder Cup legend and his leadership in 2012 will be vital if Europe is to retain the trophy," he said. "To have him play in Qatar just two weeks after being named captain is wonderful news for our event."
