Scotland’s Craig Howie is very conscious of freezing conditions back home in warming to shoot a 70 on the opening day of the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open.
Howie grabbed three birdies and heads to day two of the co-sanctioned event trailing eight shots behind Finland’s Sami Valimaki on the Mont Choisy course just 13 miles to the north of the capital, Port Louis.
Valimaki, 24, set a new course record in the mid-80s degree Fahrenheit weather, albeit for a short mid-round rain squall, muscling his way to a stunning 10-under-par 62 and two clear of the field on the course being used for a first time in the now six-year history of the event.
The world No. 323 ranked Fin birdied four holes in succession from the fifth and then also four in-a-row from the 12th.
Howie is contesting a second event of the new 2022/23 season having missed the cut in last three events of 2022 to end the year 125th on the money list, and 10 spots shy of retaining full new season Tour membership.
The young Scot made the cut in last month’s Joburg Open, and his first of the new wraparound season, and now seeks to make that two pay cheques in as many events, ending day one inside the top-25.
Scotland’s Craig Howie loving the heat in Mauritius but conscious of ‘shocking’ weather back home in Scotland. (Photograph – DP World Tour)
He said: “The golf course this week is a very different challenge and a vastly different test compared to the events I played in Europe in recent weeks, and very much different to the weather conditions currently back home in Scotland.
“The game was really solid out there today with my iron-play very good, and if I did miss a green, I was just in the collar and putting. My only bogey was a three-putt on 16 and I never felt in any danger, at all.”.
And with temps in the low 30 degrees Fahrenheit back home, Howie and his fellow competitors are warming in staying the week in a hotel right on the beach front at Mont Choisy overlooking the Indian Ocean.
He said: “It’s glorious down here and while it maybe a little bit too hot for a Scot but how can you not like being here. We’re staying in a hotel right on the beach so you can’t complain when the weather back home is absolutely shocking”.
Fellow Scot Grant Forrest was on a roller-coaster round moving to two-under through seven holes but was one-over after 10 holes, ending with a level par 72.
