ABU DHABI // Paul Casey felt like a man re-invigorated yesterday as he returned to the scene of two of his finest hours and began to consider the prospect of a third triumph in four years in the Abu Dhabi Championship. Shrugging off the worries of a recurring rib injury which seriously curtailed last season, Casey said: "This is a place I always enjoy being at and a place where I always play well. I'm looking for the same again here this week.
"I'm very excited to be getting back out there and chipping off the rust from my game. If I manage myself well over the next four days there is no reason why I can't be up there with a chance to win. "That's why I'm here - not just because I'm defending champion." Casey's normally bold approach to the game - he has reined himself in a little this month as he returns slowly to peak fitness after the injury lay-off - has been ideally suited to the National course.
"It's always been a course where if you drive the ball well you can take advantage and that's what I have been doing here," said Casey who has built up his extensive local knowledge through maintaining links with his UAE sponsors. "There are holes out there that can be difficult or unmanageable if you miss the fairway - it's as simple as that. Some of the fairways are tight and the rough is thick so the key is to hit it straight and that's what I have been doing here.
"I've always been a good driver of the ball. If that continues to be the case this week then I'll be a contender again." Getting back into the winner's circle early in the year would add weight to Casey's belief that a first major championship is within his reach. "Maybe there is a little unfinished business for me after the way last season slipped by," he added. Casey, whose three victories in the first half of last year raised his title haul to 11, is also seeking to make up for lost time in the Race to Dubai. "It was disappointing not to be part of that and try to challenge Lee and Rory [McIlroy] coming down the final stretch but there was nothing I could do about it."
Watching the exciting conclusion to the Race develop at the first staging of the lucrative Dubai World Championship in November was the next best thing, Casey remarked. "It was great stuff to watch and Lee's final round was probably the round of the year on the European Tour. "I would have loved to have been the first name on that trophy but missing out has added to my desire and enabled me to set a long-term goal for this year.
"Topping the money list has always been one of my main ambitions. Coming close a couple of years ago to Padraig [Harrington] was disappointing but it has made me work that much harder and made me much more eager to try to capture a Race to Dubai title." Casey indicated that he will continue in 2010 to divide his time between the European and US Tours. "The split will be fairly even," he said, "and as always the schedule will be geared towards preparing as well as possible for the majors. It will be much the same as you've seen from me in the past few years. I always put down more events than I should and it has been the same this year. I've ended up registering for over 30 events but I'm looking to get that figure down to 25 which would include, I hope, the Ryder Cup."
@Email:wjohnson@thenational.ae
