Looking down the leaderboard at this week’s European Tour Andalucía Masters it’s noticeable four players retired during different stages of their first rounds while a fifth withdrew without teeing-up on the tight, unforgiving Valderrama course.

Given the tough, windy conditions it would seem normal but taking a closer look, all four players who retired did so not after their round but during the course of their opening rounds.

England’s Jordan Smith withdrew at 11-over par through 14 holes on Thursday with Norwegian’s 22-year old Kristoffer Reitan having doubled the 10th hole before announcing to his playing partners he was withdrawing.

American Sam Crocker was seven-over after nine holes and withdrew and the big surprise being China’s Haotong Li, who just a few weeks ago led the PGA Championship heading to the weekend rounds.

Li walked from the Valderrama course at five-over after just three holes.  The China No. 1 bogeyed the second and then took a quadruple bogey ‘7’ at the third before calling it quits.

England golfer Jordan Smith

And while the conditions on the famed Costa del Sol were brutal, Smith let it known it was not the conditions that forced him from the golf course.

“If people are wondering why I withdrew from this week’s event, the main fact was it was my 7th week in a row and ‘the bubble’ has gotten the better of me,” Smith said.

“Feeling like being in lockdown again not being allowed out the hotel does get to you after a while and mentally I had enough.”

The 27-year old and winner of the 2017 Porsche European Open indicated it was a first occasion he’s withdrawn from a tournament mid-round and apologised to the European Tour and his sponsors for his actions.

Smith has contested all six of the ‘UK Swing’ events making the cut in four and a best finish of T14th in the English Championship.

It’s not known why the other three withdrew or why Zander Lombard withdrew before teeing-off on day one.

Of course, the return to competition at the European Tour has been under the strictest of conditions with players, caddies, media and officials obliged to remain ‘in the bubble’ of the tournament.

This is unlike the PGA Tour where players have not been under such strict restrictions and can now choose where to stay during the week.

That said, American John Catlin found himself disqualified when he and his caddy were caught out in visiting a local restaurant during the course of the English Championship at Hanbury Manor.

The Tour, at the time, issued a statement saying:  “The European Tour has withdrawn American John Catlin and his caddie Nathan Mulrooney from this week’s English Championship at Hanbury Manor following a breach of its COVID-19 protocol.

“The duo visited a local restaurant on the evening of Tuesday August 4 outside the tournament bubble, hence compromising the Tour’s health guidelines, and were withdrawn from the tournament with immediate effect as a result.”

Funny now is that Catlin enjoyed a share of the opening round lead and with a first hole birdie on day two taking him into the lead at three-under par.

“This is already an incredibly difficult golf course,” said Catlin after Thursday’s round.

“Then you add 35km winds, tough pins and very firm and fast greens. I’m very happy to be in the red. That was my goal at the start of the day, to have achieved that is very nice.

“To be fair I think it’s more important to hit it out of the middle, not necessarily keeping it down. If you can hit it out of the middle the ball will actually fly OK through the wind, but if you miss hit it at all, the misses get even bigger. A solid strike is very important.

“One or two over par is probably a decent round out there right now.”