Scott Jamieson’s decision to shorten his driver reaped a reward of finding his way high up the leaderboard heading the weekend rounds of the AVIV Dubai Championship.
Jamieson produced a sizzling seven-under par 65 to move to 10-under par and sharing 10th place with fellow Scot Grant Forrest, who matched his compatriots score, in continuing sauna-like conditions on the aptly-named Fire Course of the Jumeirah Estates in Dubai.
Frenchman and defending champ Antoine Rozner again lit-up the course with another bogey-free display of 64 and one less than day one to head the field by a shot at 15-under par.
Tied in second place at 14-under par is Italian Francesco Laporta, who added a second day 64 to his first round 66, and overnight leader Dane Joachim B Hansen and with scores of 63 and 67.
Jamiseon was two-under for his round through 10-holes and then turned-up the heat in producing five birdies in six holes from the 11th
Jamieson singled out the par-4 11th hole birdie as his pick of the birdies, hitting a 228-yard 4-iron to just two-feet.
He said: “It was as straight forward out there this morning as we are going to find any golf course with virtually zero wind and plenty of opportunities to hit it close to the hole.
Scott Jamieson shortens his driver and climbs to near the top of AVIV Dubai Championship leaderboard
“Also, there is very little rough out there so many of the fairways are quite generous, as well. So, there’s more opportunities to go at the flags as you’re coming from the fairways or short grass.
“It’s a real birdie feast out there but then you have to stay patient as the greens are very grainy, and I feel like they are a lot slower than they look which means your mind and reality are not quite matching-up some time.
“So, you have to stay patient and pick-off the birdie chances where you can but then in saying that, I have never been afraid to shoot a low score. I’ve chucked a lot of low numbers in over my time and it was to do that again today”.
Jamieson ‘shortened’ his driver two events ago at the Andalucia Masters albeit by just an inch from 45-inches to 44-inches but in a game sometimes measured in inches, it has made a big difference to the Scot’s game off the tee.
He said: “When I made the decision at Valderrama to shorten the driver, it gave me way more control that you need on that tight golf course but then last week at Portugal it was soft from all the rain and I felt like I wasn’t hitting it far at all.
“Then this week, the driver feels much better and I’m happier as the club doesn’t get stuck behind me, and when I do produce a bad swing, I’m not missing it as much when your scorecard can be all about how good your misses are”.
Forrest had nine birdies in his round on a course where a year ago he shot a last day 63 to secure a share of sixth. Robert MacIntyre, posting a second straight 68, is next best of the five of nine Scots to make the cut.
BREAKOUT
David Drysdale was left ruiing a poor chip shot into the last hole for a par not only missing the cut by a shot at the AVIV Dubai Championship but forfeiting automatic Tour membership for next season.
Drysdale needed to birdie the par-5 18th to make the cut and be assured of retaining his Tour card, posted a second day 69 to fall one shy of playing all four rounds on the Earth course at Jumeirah Estates.
The Borders golfer teed-up lying in 121st on the Race to Dubai and also right on the cut-off mark at the end of this week to retain full 2022 Tour rights but is projected with two rounds to play in Dubai to now end his year at 122nd though that will not be officially confirmed to Sunday night.
The Scot will still get to play a minimum of 15 events and maybe more on next year’s Race to Dubai schedule but whether he gets to contest as many as 30 events as he has this year seems uncertain.
It will be the first time since 2009 the proud Scot has not held onto full playing rights.
He said: “It’s disappointing but never mind. We’ll just move on and see what the next season brings”.
And next season should start for the Scot with a tee-up next fortnight in South Africa and the first event of the newly renamed 2021/22 DP World Tour.
