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Asia's finest face Els and Singh in Qatar

Asia's top guns, led by number one Thaworn Wiratchant, are aiming for glory in the Commercialbank Qatar Masters against a star-studded cast led by title holder Ernie Els and world number two Vijay Singh.

The presence of Ryder Cup stalwarts Darren Clarke, Lee Westwood, Thomas Bjorn, Miguel Angel Jimenez and David Howell make this year's US$2 million Qatar Masters its best ever field but the Asians Tour stars are ready crash the party.

There are some mouth-watering match-ups in the opening two rounds in the event co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour. Thaworn, who won a record four titles last year, has been paired with Singh and Howell while two-time Asian number one Thongchai Jaidee will play alongside Els and Bjorn.

Zhang Lian-wei, China's leading stalwart, will be in the company of Westwood and McGinley while Randhawa, sixth last week in Abu Dhabi, begins his quest alongside Jimenez and rising South African star Charl Schwartzel.

Thaworn, 39, is looking forward to his head-to-head showdown with Singh after he outscored the big Fijian in Shanghai in November. However, the Thai is more concerned with his driving display than outscoring his more illustrious partner. Since the start of the year, Thaworn discarded his regular driver due to the non-conforming regulations and he has yet to find a new driver to his liking.

"I've got two drivers in the bag now and have yet to decide on which one to use this week. I used my old driver for five seasons and obviously the change has created a different feel for me due to the size of the clubhead being so much bigger in the new drivers," said Thaworn.

A return to Doha where he finished tied 16th last year will however give him some added confidence when he heads to the first tee on Thursday. "The course is playing a lot longer this year as the ball is not running on the fairways. However, I've managed to get the same local club caddie (a Scot) to help me again and I'm looking forward to this week.

"The field here this week has many strong players and I'm looking forward to playing with Vijay again," said Thaworn.

South African Els tees off in his first event of 2006 looking to play his way into the history books.

The title-holder, ranked fifth in the world, will be aiming to become the first man to successfully defend a title at the challenging Doha Golf Club. There is also incentive for "The Big Easy" as he can match Bernhard Langer's long-standing record of 69 consecutive cuts made in Europe, although he is keen to retain his crown which will reinforce his comeback to form following a knee injury last year.

"When you are defending a tournament, you always have great memories and this is no different," said Els, who won last year after coming back from five shots back with a final round 65.

"We have a tougher field this week with Vijay and some of the other European stars so it should be a fantastic week. I haven't seen Vijay but wherever he goes, he is very consistent."

Els was sidelined for four months last year following a knee surgery but showed he has not lost the winning touch by lifting the dunhill championship on home soil and then finishing second behind compatriot Retief Goosen at the Southern African Airways Open last month.

"There is always a fear that when you come back, you will not be the same and something might go missing forever. In my first tournament back at Sun City, I wasn't in good shape really. Mentally I was very nervous and wasn't quite myself. But my next two weeks was better and I was very happy to get back to my normal self that quickly," said Els.

Randhawa feels that Asians can compete against the best now and will not be surprised to see an Asian winner in Qatar. "It'll be a matter of time before we have a major winner from Asia. Asian golf has come of age and on our given days, we can win anywhere," said the Indian star.

January 25, 2006