After a two-year hiatus, the Legends Tour (formally the Staysure Tour) has made a welcome return to the shores of Mauritius.
Constance Belle Mare Plage on the east coast of Mauritius will host the 10th edition of the MCB Tour Championship.
“Out of the 600 destinations I have been to in my career Mauritius is the favourite,” said defending champion Jarmo Sandelin, who turned pro in 1987.
“This week’s strategy is to leave the driver in the bag and find the fairways as the course is not very long, but you need to keep the ball in play,” the big-hitting Swede confirmed.
Notable players in the field include 2005 US Open champion Michael Campbell, Paul Lawrie who won the Open Championship in 1999, and two-time senior Major champion Roger Chapman.
The rest of the star-studded field includes Stephen Dodd, Frenchman Thomas Levet, Markus Brier and South Africa’s Chris Williams.
“It’s great to be back and see all the guys back on tour,” said Williams. “I have had a win, and second place, back in South Africa recently so I’m feeling good and hoping for the best.”
The tournament takes place on the Legend course, which is a par-72, 6,018-metre Hugh Baiocchi design with narrow fairways surrounded by unforgiving bush and numerous water hazards.
“Keeping the ball in play is premium on this course,” said South Africa’s James Kingston, who is playing in his fifth MCB Tour Championship. “The more aggressive you are off the tee naturally brings more birdie opportunities into play, but you need to know which holes to do it on and when to hold back.”
A collective sigh of relief is notable among all the players grateful to be back on tour and on the magical island of Mauritius.
With the Order of Merit closely contested as well as rookies like Jeev Milkha Sing making his first appearance on the Legends Tour, it promises to be a hotly contested affair.
