Adam Scott leads the field at this week's Qatar Masters as the European Tour's swing through the Middle East continues.
Watch live coverage of the Qatar Masters on Sky Sports
The European Tour's swing through the Middle East continues this weekend, with 10 of the world's top 30 players teeing off in Doha for the 11th staging of the Qatar Masters.
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Adam Scott heads the field, the world number eight returning to the scene of his 2002 victory - the second of the Australian's five European Tour triumphs.
Coming off the back of a top 25 finish in last week's Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, Scott will be attempting to become the first player to win the tournament more than once.
And, although he is now more attuned to life on the PGA Tour, the 27-year-old certainly seems keen to once again forge the "strong bond" he has with the Tour on which he made his name.
"It has been a long time since I won back in 2002 and a lot has happened to me since then but I am delighted to now be heading back to Qatar," Scott told
www.europeantour.com.
"The European Tour gave me a chance when I was a young kid turning professional and they extended a lot of invitations to me. Luckily I was able to take advantage of them and became a member of the Tour before playing in America - so there is a very strong bond there for me.
"It would be very poor of me to forget what The European Tour did for me. That is why I am trying to make the effort to get back over here this year and certainly in the lead up to next year.
"It is not just because I want to support The European Tour, I think it is healthy for my game as well. I see myself as a global player and it is good to get back to my roots."
Spectacular
Last year's event produced a spectacular finish, with South African Retief Goosen holing an eagle putt from 30 feet on the final green to snatch the title away from Australian Nick O'Hern.
However, Goosen's own attempt at a double Qatar success will have to wait another year after problems resulting from recent laser eye surgery forced his late withdrawal.
Nevertheless, big names are abundant, with Paul Casey, Luke Donald, Niclas Fasth, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson, Scott Verplank and Lee Westwood - the early leader of the Order of Merit - all joining Scott in the field.
World Number 12 Garcia had a final-round 67 last year and said he was looking forward to more of the same 12 months on.
"I enjoyed the course last year as well as the warmth of the galleries," the Spaniard said. "It is certainly a region that has shown commitment to the development of our sport so I am more than happy to be returning to Doha."
Good form
Following his maiden win last week in Abu Dhabi, Martin Kaymer will also be looking to continue his good form, the young German teeing off in Thursday's opening round alongside Westwood and former US Open champion Michael Campbell.
Bound to be of interest to Kaymer is the fact that the Doha course, which opened in 1996, is designed by Peter Harradine - who also created the venue on which he scored his maiden Tour success on Sunday.
Holding four more titles than Kaymer is Barry Lane, with the 47-year-old this week playing in his 600th tournament on the European Tour.
Lane thus becomes only the fifth player to reach that figure, following in the footsteps of Sam Torrance, Roger Chapman, Eamonn Darcy and Malcolm Mackenzie.
