Marcus Fraser looks to defend his title at Ballantine’s Championship – European Tour News
Defending champion of Ballantine’s championship Marcus Fraser will be on the course tomorrow to defend his title. He will be hoping to successfully curb the challenge of his opponents and lift the trophy for the second time this year.
Fraser recently was involved in a minor accident on the course while he was playing with his son. He survived it and only had a slight fracture. It could have been the end of his playing career if the accident was serious.
The Australian had a slip disc as he was carrying his son on his shoulders. His timely operation saved him from a severe injury.
Last year, Fraser won his second European Tour title. He played beautiful golf during the championship and won by a good margin of four strokes. His nearest competitors were Gareth Maybin and Brett Rumford.
The 32-year-old Australian had rounds of 65, 70 and 69 last year.
Fraser about his injury said, “I picked up my son over my head and felt something go in my neck last December. I thought nothing of it and continued to play golf which I probably shouldn’t have and over Christmas, it just deteriorated. I was referred to a surgeon who did a MRI scan on me and it showed that the disc had prolapsed.”
Now that Fraser has recovered completely, he is looking to show his skills once again in the Ballantine’s Championship from tomorrow. It will be a field where the European elite will be competing against each other. The world number one Lee Westwood and Thongchai Jaidee will be among the top contenders.
Fraser really has to work hard on his game and produce some good under par rounds to put up a fight against these top players. As he is the defending champion, he needs to show a repeat performance this year also. The Australian feels confident this year also that he will show some good promising golf during all the four rounds.
The 32-year-old Fraser has been working hard on the practice range and on his swing. He enjoyed playing on the conditions in Blackstone Golf Club during his practice round. The Australian was seen hitting the ball well off the tee and fairway.
On the contrary, Korea’s Noh Seung-yul will be playing in front of his home crowd. He has already shown his class by winning last year’s Asian Tour Order of Merit. Noh was also the youngest player to have achieved this trade mark. Noh will be up against a field which includes the top players of rankings. He will have to card some under par rounds to pose a threat to his opponents.
The tee off will take place tomorrow at the Blackstone Golf Course in Seoul.
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