Reed aims for another win at Qatar’s International Series

Buoyant Patrick Reed heads into International Series Qatar, which gets underway today at Doha Golf Club (DGC), after clinching an emphatic three-shot victory at the Link Hong Kong Open last week.
The 2018 Masters champion acknowledges that it was a big relief to finally reach double digits with a ‘long overdue’ 10th career win. He has had a number of near misses, with 10 top-five finishes since joining the LIV Golf League in 2022.
Last week, he showcased his talent on the famous Composite Course at Fanling, highlighted by a sensational 11-under-par 59 in the third round of the storied tournament — the first of three events closing out The International Series and the Asian Tour season. Apart from Reed, the other major champions in the 120-player field are South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel.
“That was huge. I have been trying to get that 10th win, get to double digits for a while now, and it has been frustrating, because I feel like the game’s been there. I just haven’t quite gotten over the line,” Reed said while addressing the media on Tuesday, on the eve of the Qatar event, the penultimate event of the season.
“It feels great to come out and feel like the game was where it needed to be and finally get that 10th win. It felt like it was a long time overdue.”
This will be Reed’s first taste of the DGC course, which is known for its notoriously tricky windy conditions. Having played at the course since arriving on Monday, the 34-year-old American said: “The golf course is in really good shape, and you have to hit fairways. With the rough, the ball never sits up. It always just figures out a way to go the bottom. And so you know it is going to be crucial to hit the tee shot solid. Hit it straight. And you know you will control some iron shots. Because even though the greens are large, if you end up missing a green, it’s just not really usually a good spot. So yeah, ball striking is key.”
Ben Campbell was Reed’s nearest challenger last week, and this tournament is crucial to the New Zealander as he tries to overtake John Catlin at the top of The International Series Rankings and secure a spot in the LIV Golf League next season.
When asked about how he would take on the tricky DGC course, Campbell said: “I grew up living in a place where there was always a lot of wind (New Zealand). So I’m looking forward to this. I think the wind’s going to get up.
“So yes, I feel like I normally play pretty well in the wind, driving the ball well. So I’m looking forward to it. The course is in amazing shape, the rough is pretty long. But the greens are rolling amazing. So it’s going to be class. I’m looking forward to it.”
With two weeks remaining in the International Series, Catlin — who also shot a 59 this year — missed last week’s cut in Hong Kong. Catlin, who attended the press conference on Tuesday, said there’s “a lot of hard work to be done” over the remaining two weeks on the Asian Tour and The International Series to finally finish number one on both. It all starts today with the Qatar event and concludes next week at the PIF Saudi International.
This week the American could potentially complete the first part of his mission and claim the Asian Tour Order of Merit. It’s a far easier feat compared with topping The International Series Rankings.
He leads the Merit list on 3,030.06 points, with his nearest challenger, second-placed Richard Lee from Canada, trailing by the large margin of 1,245.81 points.
To put things into perspective, Doha winner will earn 787.5 points, while 427.5 points goes to the player in second, meaning a good finish by Catlin and other results going his way will see him crowned Asian Tour number one for the first time.
“It would mean so much to win the Asian Tour Order of Merit as this is where it all started for me,” said Catlin – a six-time winner on the Asian Tour, two of those coming this season. “It has been a special year. I have done a lot of great things. I have two more weeks to go and hopefully I can do a few more great things and clinch both the Asian Tour and International Series titles. But there’s a lot of hard work to be done,” the 34-year-old said.
Catlin surprisingly missed the cut at last week’s Link Hong Kong Open and while that did not have much impact on his merit list ambitions, thanks to a dominant year, it has made the rankings race even closer than it already was.
He has an 82.95 lead on the Rankings from Campbell, who is second and closed the gap by finishing second in Hong Kong, where he was defending champion.
Next week many more points are available – the winner earns 1,000 – so it is literally wide open and going to be exhilarating to watch as the winner earns a place on next year’s LIV Golf League.
The talent emerging from the local and regional golf scene is well represented this week with nine players in the field for the $US2.5mn prize purse tournament.
Saleh al-Kabi, who will represent the hosts, sounded upbeat on Tuesday. “It’s really good to playing with the major champions in the same field. It’s great. It’s going to be a good experience, This is my fourth International Series event and I am confident. Particularly, after a good performance in the Arab Championship in the UAE. I am looking forward to a strong performance” said al-Kabi.
Al-Kabi was part of the Qatar team which finished third at the recently held Pan Arab Golf Championship in Ajman, UAE. The other golfer to represent Qatar is Daniil Sokolov. “I know this course well and I will play my game and try to secure a good finish. Competing with leading golfers is an honour and I am hoping to give my best,” he said.
Moroccan sensation Adam Bresnu who’s currently the No. 1 ranked golfer in US collegiate golf is also taking part in the event. The 20-year-old was instrument in Morocco’s victory in the Pan Arab Golf Championship firing a stunning 16-under-par.