SPICY ENTREE

INTRIGUING STORYLINES ABOUND AHEAD OF THE EUROPEAN TOUR’S EARLY SEASON STOPS IN ABU DHABI, DUBAI AND KING ABDULLAH ECONOMIC CITY

- KENT GRAY

With the Tokyo Olympics and Ryder Cup to be squeezed into the schedule after the majors and before the end of the Race to Dubai, the plot of this European Tour season will thicken quickly. A great story still needs a gripping (calendar year) start and for that, you can again rely on the two-part Desert Swing – even with two central characters, Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm, again conspicuous by their absence.

With its $7 million Rolex Series status, the 15th Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship never fails to deliver drama but 2020 could be particularly spicy with Bryson DeChambeau back for his third tilt at the Falcon Trophy after bypassing the capital last season. The Golf Scientist has bulked up in search of more driver swing speed but the “massive” narrative could easily centre around a slower velocity – the increasingly tiresome focus on DeChambeau’s pace of play. Mind you, if he dares peer sideways along the driving range at Abu Dhabi Golf Club, the sight of Brooks Koepka, the world’s No.1 critic of slow play, will surely encourage DeChambeau to get a wriggle on.