CommercialBank Qatar Masters and Farmers Insurance Open Preview

This week the Middle East Swing moves to Doha in Qatar for the CommercialBank Qatar Masters, starting Wednesday.

The sovereign Arab state is a small peninsula on the north east coast of the Arabian peninsula and controversially the barren country most famous for pearl hunting and home of enormous oil and gas reserves was awarded the right to stage the world's biggest single sport event, the FIFA World Cup in 2022. Qatar is home to only three golf courses, one of which being the championship course at Doha Golf Club and it has hosted the CommercialBank Qatar Masters since 1998. The annual European Tour event is the second oldest annual event in the state of Qatar after the Qatar Open ATP Tennis Tournament and has attracted many of the world's best to play in this part of the world. 2013 is no exception.

The field is led by the world number four and Volvo Golf Champions winner Louis Oosthuizen with world number five and Abu Dhabi runner-up Justin Rose, world number eleven Jason Dufner, Open Champion Ernie Els, Martin Kaymer, Sergio Garcia, Peter Hanson, Branden Grace, Matteo Manassero, Thorbjorn Olesen, Retief Goosen, Michael Campbell, Paul Casey, Thomas Bjorn and David Howell all looking to take the Qatar crown from defending champion Paul Lawrie.

In recent years the tournament has had as much star power as the Dubai Desert Classic and has a roll of honour to rival any significant tournament outside of the Majors and World Golf Championships. Andrew Coltart won the first edition in 1998, he would go on to play for Europe in the 1999 Ryder Cup and won four tournaments across the European and Australasian Tours, the win in Doha helped the Scot to finish in ninth place on the Volvo Order of Merit in 1998. Paul Lawrie won in 1999, a year he would go on to win The Open Championship at Carnoustie and represent Europe in the Ryder Cup, the Scot would go on to win the title again in 2012 and represent Europe in the Ryder Cup for a second time. Rolf Muntz ended the Scottish domination of the tournament in 2000 winning his only European Tour title. South Africa's Tony Johnstone won in 2001, claiming his 6^th and final European Tour win over the desert course in Doha. Johnstone was the first of four South African champions in Qatar, he was followed by Darren Fichardt in 2003, Ernie Els in 2005 and Retief Goosen in 2007.

Adam Scott became the so far only Australian winner of the Qatar Masters in 2002 when he won by six strokes, he once again dominated the course in 2008 when he won by three shots and shot a course record 61 in the final round. Joakim Haeggman became the first of three Swedish champions in 2004 when he won by 1 stroke, Henrik Stenson won in 2006 and Robert Karlsson won in 2010. Alvaro Quiros won his second European Tour title at the Qatar Masters in 2009 and Thomas Bjorn won in 2011. In all the tournament has been won by three Major Champions, three World Golf Champions, two Players Champions, one World Number One and five European Ryder Cup team members in its 15 previous editions.

Qatar most definitely is not like Abu Dhabi or especially Dubai, it is not and probably doesn't have ambitions to be a major global golfing destination but what it does have ambitions to be is one of the most significant tournaments on the European Tour. It has a demanding championship course which is open to the elements of the desert and is always in magnificent condition; and it has a lot of money, capable of luring the world's best to play in a country they would never contemplate going to for a holiday (or vacation).

Last week the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship was convincingly the biggest tournament of the week, but this week the European Tour and PGA Tour have tournaments with stellar fields, the other being thousands of miles west of Qatar on the sunny west coast of the United States. The Farmers Insurance Open, formerly the Buick Invitational and originally the San Diego Open, is headlined by world number two and six-time champion Tiger Woods; the California native has also won a US Open over the South Course at Torrey Pines and is joined by Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, defending champion Brandt Snedeker, Masters champion Bubba Watson, Keegan Bradley, Robert Karlsson, Ryo Ishikawa, Rickie Fowler and Nick Watney.

The tournament has been a fixture on the PGA Tour schedule since 1952 and has been utterly dominated by Americans, with Jose Maria Olazabal and Gary Player being the only foreign born champions of the tournament. Palmer, Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Mickelson, Love, Daly, Woods and Bubba Watson are among the leading Americans to have won the event which has been dominated by Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson over the last 14 years, with Woods winning six and Mickelson winning 2 (3 in total) since 1999.

The tournament, although synonymous with Tiger Woods success, is by all measures the home tournament of Phil Mickelson. The 42-year-old was born in San Diego and lives in Rancho Santa Fe, and has agreed to renovate the North Course on the complex. Mickelson wants the course to be playable by all and present a fair test for the best, enticing players to go for shots and showing off views of the Pacific. Mickelson's connections with the course span a lifetime of golf in Southern California for the four-time Major champion and there has even been talk of Mickelson actually hosting the tournament in the future in the way Tiger Woods does with the AT&T National and World Challenge. This would enhance the event and enable it to attract a major sponsor if needed and recruit a world-class field for a tournament which has undoubtedly been hit by the emergence of the Middle East Swing on the European Tour.

Abu Dhabi was the first big event of the season, but this week will be the first week when two tournaments in one week will provide exceptional entertainment from the best golfers in the world across two continents.

Another great week of golf on Sky Sports begins Monday night

Monday 7pm PGA Tour Highlights: Humana Challenge Sky Sports 4

8pm European Tour Highlights: Abu Dhabi HSBC Sky Sports 4

10pm Shell's Wonderful World of Golf Sky Sports 4

11.30pm PGA Tour Classic: 2007 Wachovia Champs Sky Sports 4

Tuesday 6pm European Tour Weekly Sky Sports 4

6.30pm Golfing World Sky Sports 4

Wednesday 6am CommercialBank Qatar Masters Sky Sports 2

Thursday 6am CommercialBank Qatar Masters Sky Sports 1

8pm Farmers Insurance Open Sky Sports 3

Friday 9.30am CommercialBank Qatar Masters Sky Sports 2

8pm Farmers Insurance Open Sky Sports 3

Saturday 9.30am CommercialBank Qatar Masters Sky Sports 3

8pm Farmers Insurance Open Sky Sports 3

Sunday 6pm Farmers Insurance Open   Sky Sports 2