South Africa’s Retief Goosen will take no further part in the defence of his title in the 2008 Commercialbank Qatar Masters, Presented by Dolphin Energy, after being forced to withdraw with an eye complaint.

The defending champion was left frustrated after suffering blurred vision following recent corrective laser surgery. Despite a whistle-stop flight for an appointment with a specialist in Dubai, the problem persisted resulting in the champion’s withdrawal just 24 hours before the start of the $2.5 million tournament

“I’m obviously very sad that I am unable to defend my title,” said Goosen. “I came all this way to play but unfortunately the eye is causing a problem. I thought it would come good but it hasn’t. I went to Dubai yesterday and the advice was to go to London for treatment.

“I have had laser treatment before, seven years ago, and felt I needed a touch up which I had done ten days ago. But there has been a bit of growth with a fibre in the left eye. It is a very simple procedure to take it out and the advice was to do it sooner. It is a shame, as I love this event, love this course. I think I pulled out of the Scottish Open once with a back injury but that is all. You are never happy leaving a tournament without teeing it up.”

Hassan Al Nuami, President of the Qatar Golf Association, who host the event along with Commercialbank and the Qatar Olympic Committee, spoke to Goosen as soon as he heard the issue and offered every assistance on the basis that the player’s health was the primary concern.

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“Obviously it is a disappointment with Retief being our defending champion.,” said Al Nuami. “He has been a great ambassador and champion for us and we look forward to him returning to regain his title. We appreciate Retief committing right until the last minute before making his decision. We feel very sorry he is not able to defend but wish him a speedy recovery and every success for the rest of the season.”

With Goosen out of the running, Australia’s Adam Scott leads nine players from the top 30 of the Official World Golf Rankings and the popular 27 year-old will start as one of the favourites over what is often a punishing 7,388-yard course.

“It’s been a long time since I won here back in 2002 and a lot has happened since then,” said Scott. “The European Tour gave me a chance when I was a young kid turning professional and they extended a lot of invitations to me.

“Luckily I was able to take advantage of them and became a member of the Tour before moving over and playing in America – so there is definitely a strong bond there for me and I’m delighted to be back in Qatar.”

Scott leads a strong field that also includes top 30 players in Luke Donald, Paul Casey, Niclas Fasth, Sergio Garcia, defending champion Retief Goosen, Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson, Scott Verplank and Lee Westwood.

But it is the return of Scott, which is exciting the galleries who remember his brilliant six-shot victory in 2002, the second Tour success of his career, at the age of just 21. His only win of 2007 came the week before the Masters at the Houston Open, where Scott's tee shot landed in a water hazard on the 72nd hole, but he saved par with a massive clutch 48-foot putt to edge Stuart Appleby.

"I obviously played well to win, but a little bit last year, I felt like I played all my good golf before I got to the Majors, certainly the first two,” added Scott.
 
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“I was also playing great going into the U.S. Open and then by the time Thursday rolled around, all my good golf was left out on the practice range.”

This week Scott aims to re-invent himself as a European Tour player and admitted that 2008 is a key year for his development. “Yes, I’ve matured well as a golfer since winning here in 2002 but not won any Majors. This is a big year for me and I’m looking forward to it.”

While the spotlight switches to the serious business of the opening today (Thursday), having a good time was the order of the day yesterday (Wednesday) as the players mixed practice with pleasure in the Rolex Pro-Am which saw European Tour pros playing alongside sporting knights Sir Ian Botham and Sir Steve Redgrave, ex-Arsenal striker Ian Wright, US track legend Michael Johnson, tennis star Boris Becker and Hollywood actress Jane Seymour.