Haydn Barron has emerged as the new frontrunner in the Qatar Masters golf tournament. In Doha, the Australian golfer has taken the lead in the DP World Tour event with a score of 67 (-5), bringing his total to 135 (68 67, -9). At the halfway point, he is two shots ahead of his compatriot Harrison Endycott and Japanese player Rikuya Hoshino, who are both tied for second place with 137 (-7).
At the Doha Golf Club (par 72), Filippo Celli has made significant progress, climbing seven positions. Currently ranked 23rd with a score of 141 (71 70, -3), the Roman golfer remains the top-performing Italian, just as he did last week in Bahrain.
Celli achieved a score of 70 (-2) with four birdies and two bogeys. Also making the cut at 60th place with a score of 144 (par) are Vicentino Guido Migliozzi (70 74), who lost ground, and Puglian Francesco Laporta (72 72). However, Edoardo Molinari and Matteo Manassero were eliminated, finishing tied for 78th with a score of 145 (+1).
Renato Paratore is currently in 99th place with a score of 147 (+3), Lorenzo Scalise in 113th with 149 (+5), and Andrea Pavan in 119th with 151 (+7). The leaderboard in Qatar is closely contested, with Danish player Niklas Norgaard and South African Zander Lombard (coming off a second-place finish in the Bahrain Championship) sharing fourth place with a score of 138 (-6).
As for the leader, Barron delivered an impressive performance without any bogeys, highlighted by five birdies, three of which were consecutive to finish, all achieved on the back nine. Chinese player Ashun Wu slipped from first to sixth place, joining a tight battle with ten players tied at 139 (-5) strokes.
Qatar, officially known as the State of Qatar, is located in West Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East, with its only land border being Saudi Arabia to the south. The rest of its territory is surrounded by the Persian Gulf.
The Gulf of Bahrain, an inlet of the Persian Gulf, separates Qatar from nearby Bahrain. The capital city, Doha, is home to over 80% of the country’s population, and the land primarily consists of flat, low-lying desert terrain. Ruled as a hereditary monarchy by the House of Thani, Qatar’s sovereignty dates back to 1868 when Mohammed bin Thani signed an agreement with Britain, recognizing its unique status.
After being under Ottoman rule, Qatar became a British protectorate in 1916 and gained independence in 1971. Currently, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani serves as the emir, exercising extensive executive, legislative, and judicial powers under the Constitution of Qatar. He has the authority to appoint the prime minister and cabinet, while the Consultative Assembly, which is partially elected, can hinder legislation and has limited ability to remove ministers.
According to the Source tennisworldusa.org