Jakarta, November 26 - Two-time Major winner Retief Goosen of South Africa hopes to attune to the rhythm of playing good golf again when he tees off at the US$750,000 Indonesia Open on Thursday.
The 44-year-old will headline the star-studded field which include Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal, Thai veteran Thongchai Jaidee, China’s Liang Wen-chong and local star Rory Hie at the Pantai Indah Kapuk course at Damai Indah Golf.
Goosen, winner of the 2001 and 2004 U.S. Open, is feeling more confident and comfortable with his swing after recovering from a back injury which curtailed most of his season last year.
“I’ve had some problems with my back last year and I’ve not played much golf since. I think I only played one month of golf last year. I feel great playing in the last three events. It has been a tough year but it’s nice to be back and playing again,” said Goosen.
“I felt like my swing is coming back a little bit when I played in South Africa last week. I just need to start making some putts. I’ve always enjoyed playing in Asia. The golf course is looking great and I’m very looking forward to this week.”
He admits that the road to recovery has not been easy. “Getting back to the rhythm of playing good golf is not easy. You got to practice a lot and give yourself a few weeks to get back to playing well again.
“Overall, I’m pretty confident with the way I’m playing now,” explained Goosen, whose last victory on the Asian Tour was the Iskandar Johor Open back in 2008.
Larrazabal, who recorded two top-10 finishes in Portugal and Shanghai in October, will put his recent run of good form to the test against Asia’s top stars.
“I love to challenge the top stars as they motivate me to play better. I need to work on my driving as I’ve been missing a lot of fairways. My iron shots are better now and my short game is still alright. My putting is getting better too. If my driver gets better, I should be able to shoot some low numbers,” said the Spaniard.
He returns to Indonesia for the first time since 2008 and will aim for a return into the winners’ circle as his last victory was back in 2011.
“It feels great to be back. I love playing golf all around the world. I played nine holes here yesterday and the golf course is looking great. I’m looking forward to playing good this week and I hope to keep up with my good form” said Larrazabal.
Fans from around the world can also watch these world class golfers in action through the live broadcast on the Asian Tour Media platform. Asian Tour Media will produce 16 hours of live coverage from the event which will be seen across Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America plus further coverage and distribution generated via the highlights and magazine programmes from the event, resulting in global media exposure for all the sponsors involved in this prestigious tournament.
Established in 1974, the Indonesia Open, which is making a return onto the Asian Tour schedule after a lapse of several years, boasts of a roll of honor that includes prominent names such as the late American Payne Stewart, Frank Nobilo of New Zealand, Filipino legend Frankie Minoza, Australia’s Craig Parry, Chinese Taipei’s Lu Chien-soon, Myanmar’s Mya Aye and Thai duo Thongchai Jaidee and Thaworn Wiratchant, who are both Asian Tour Order of Merit champions.
The 2013 Indonesia Open is supported by some of the most recognisable domestic and international brands, which include BANK BRI, Total E&P Indonesie, Pertamina, Japfa, PT. Indofood Sukses Makmur Tbk, JS Luwansa Hotel & Convention Center, Harum Energy, Bintang, Subway, Beringer, Srixon, Loewe, Danone, Hypernet, Ricoh and Maui Jim.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment