Tommy Fleetwood of England plays a shot during the third round of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship in the capital of the United Arab Emirates on January 21. Fleetwood, is the title favourite Commercial Bank Qatar Masters which begins at the Doha Golf Club
English golfer Tommy Fleetwood is mighty pleased with his form, saying his 'improved putting' helped him tilt the scales in Abu Dhabi last Sunday.
Just three days ago, Fleetwood edged players like Martin Kaymer, Henrik Stenson and Dustin Johnson by a shot to start the new season with the winner's cheque of $450,000.
"I just did what I have been doing, but putted a little bit better," Fleetwood, the title favourite at this week's Qatar Masters, said yesterday.
"I think I didn't know what the stats were at all, but a lot of people have said I only missed six greens, and I didn't 3-putt all week," he said about his form.
"So put those two together, (the) law of averages say you'll be up there somewhere. Just got it going on the back nine, as well, on Sunday," Fleetwood, 26, said.
"This week, it came together -- it was about time I got one (title win)," he said with a smile.
Fleetwood, ranked No. 53 on Monday, said one of his goals in the new season is to break into the top-50 and take it from there.
"It (the win in Abu Dhabhi) brought us closer to the overall goal of the year - to get into the Top-50 and get the World Ranking up as high as we can," Fleetwood said.
The northern Englishman said the win last week just added events to his overall event campaign in 2017.
"It (the win in Abu Dhabi) opens up a couple more tournaments now, the WGCs. (I want to) be playing that sort of schedule where it's World Golf Championships and majors," he said.
"It (the season-opening win) has put us closer, but it's just really the start. We had to do something like that to actually get anywhere near. So (I) don't (wont to) sort of take your foot off the gas. You've got to keep kicking on," he said.
Fleetwood knows windy conditions may dictate terms at the Doha Golf Club (DGC) this week.
"The wind plays a massive factor. The wind always blows (here in Doha). You very rarely get a calm day. It's long, and the greens; the greens are massive. They are generally quite grainy, quite sloppy," Fleetwood said.
"Put that together with wind and it becomes tough. The greens are massive protection for the course, but again it is a course where generally you get sort of longish drivers and good drivers of the golf ball that win the tournament," he said.
Fleetwood, a former No. 1-ranked amateur, said playing the 'Desert Swing' (Abu Dhabi, Doha and Dubai) was ideal preparation for the season ahead.
" Yeah, it is (a great way to start the season). It's three absolutely brilliant golf courses, brilliant tournaments. Great test of golf, really," Fleetwood said of the 'Desert Swing' events.
"Abu Dhabi always hits you after you've had a month off or three weeks off. They hit you but they are great tournaments and you always set great, great fields and great players, because they are such good standard of courses and good events, and everybody enjoys coming," Fleetwood said.
"I played well here last year. I actually feel like this course suits me more than last week," Fleetwood, at one stage down to No. 188 in the rankings, said yesterday.
"A lot of the holes sort of set up better to my eye. Actually last week, even though I played well there, was a lot of tee shots that didn't go well. You always go to a course and you can't quite see everything like you want to, and that was one of them. I did all right in the end.
"But this one kind of fits my eye a little bit more. We'll see how we do. My game shouldn't have gone off too much. So we'll just see how we go. Hopefully we'll carry on," Fleetwood said.
