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| Peter Lawrie in Agadir - Getty Images |
In 2011 Lawrie carded a superb round of 64 to establish a three shot lead after the opening round. The Dubliner’s eight under par on the Golf Du Palais Royal giving him top leaderboard position over England’s John Bickerton, defending champion Rhys Davies and India’s Shiv Kapur on the first day.
The 2012 champion Michael Hoey returns to Morocco and is part of a strong Irish field that includes Cormac Sharvin, Garry Hurley, Rory McNamara, Paul Dunne and Kevin Phelan.
Last season in Agadir Phelan finished in share of third place with Richie Ramsey winning the event on ten under par, and Hoey signing off in share of 34th place. In contrast Lawrie carded an opening 78 and was amongst those Irish players who missed the cut. A group that included Damien McGrane and Gareth Maybin - neither of whom return this year having lost their Tour cards.
This year the Trophée Hassan II is hosted on the Red Course at Royal Dar es Salam, designed by Robert Trent Jones, with a par-72 layout that stretches to almost 7,500 yards. With the kikuyu grass ensuring it plays even longer on the fairways and rough - toughening the shot-making.
With current forecasts suggesting rain during the week the weather looks set to also play a role over the four days. Although the smallish greens might allow for some more aggressive shot making if they become softer over the weekend.
Undoubtedly this will be a good scoring week for the players as in 2010 Rhys Davies won the title with a -25 on the card to secure his maiden victory on the European Tour on the same course. He also returns this week to a venue that offers positive memories and in search of a good result to kick start his season.
Over the past two seasons Lawrie has found himself on the wrong side of the Race to Dubai rankings and finished 124th last year – which proved insufficient to retain his playing rights. A return to Q School last November, at the home of his sponsor PGA Catalunya, failed to offer any reprieve either.
Ironically though Lawrie finds himself in a more relaxed frame of mind about the outlook for this season despite the supposed increased uncertainty
“Without a schedule I have had more time to work on a few things and get a sense of perspective.” said Lawrie, “The trip to Tshwane Open came too early in the season last February and I didn’t meet my own expectations.”
“But the Open de España a few weeks ago showed some progress in Valderrama. Which is a challenging place at any time”
Advanced PGA Professional coach Brendan McDaid again carries the bag for Lawrie who arrived to Rabat fresh with news that he had received a sponsor’s invitation for Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at the K Club in two weeks.
“Having Brendan at Valderrama was helpful as making the cut was probably our first goal from the outset,” said Lawrie, “Once that was achieved on the Friday we then focused more on the golf at the weekend. All in all, it was a good weekend’s work.”
“Therefore it made sense to continue the partnership in Morocco this week and look to build momentum ahead of the Irish Open,” continued Peter, “So delighted that Brendan was able to travel for these dew days.”
“Obviously very pleased about the chance to play the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at The K Club,” continued Peter “It’s proving a busy month considering I have a limited schedule.”
The Hassan II Golf Trophy is a golf tournament hosted by His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid and was named after his father, Hassan II, who served as King of Morocco. The event was held at the Royal Golf Dar Es Salam in Rabat from 2010 until it moved to Agadir in 2011.
Previous winners include Scotland’s Richie Ramsay, German Marcel Siem, England’s David Horsey and Northern Ireland’s Michael Hoey. The event has been played since 1971, but did not take place from 1986 to 1990, 2004, and 2009. It has been a European Tour event just since 2010.
* Peter Lawrie is sponsored by NewstalkFM and PGA Catalunya
