Mark Power on a mission in Abu Dhabi
Mark Power
Mark Power hopes to build on fond memories of his maiden professional victory and keep his HotelPlanner Tour season going at the Abu Dhabi Challenge.
The Kilkenny man (24) tees it up at sun-drenched Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club on Wednesday, ranked 73rd in the Road to Mallorca standings, with only the top 70 qualifying for the next two enhanced points events in China.
After that, the top 45 will contest the season-ending Grand Final in Mallorca, which will decide the top 15 in the standings who are awarded DP World Tour cards.
Power needs a hot finish to keep that dream alive, but after winning the Clutch Tour Championship at Al Ain last year, he feels good about his chances of making the Hainan and Hangzhou Opens, which offer increased prize funds and ranking points.
“It will be a good challenge for the next few days because it’s extremely hot,” said the two-time Walker Cup player. “The real feel has been 45C for the last couple of days.
“I’ll just try and stay hydrated. Try and somehow stay cool. It's the hottest heat I've ever been in, but everyone else is in the same boat, so I’ll just try and handle that well.
“Obviously, I know the course very well, so I've kept practice fairly light. You don't want to wreck yourself.”
A repeat of his 38th-place finish in the recent Open de Portugal could be enough to catapult Power into the top 70.
“I’m feeling good,” he said. “My game’s in a good spot. It's been good all year, really. So it'll be nice to cap the regular season off with a nice solid week, and hopefully take that into China.
“I’m not going to worry too much about it, but I do need to move up a few spots to guarantee my place in those events because that's where you want to be.
“I want to see if I can put myself in a good position going into the end of the year, and it's a course I've played well on before, obviously, winning here last year.
“I’ve played the Challenge Tour event here a few times and I love the place. So hopefully I can play well, go out and give it my best and see where that leaves me.”
Power is not the only Irishman under pressure.
Liam Nolan is 43rd in the rankings, while Gary Hurley (59th), Max Kennedy (77th), Ronan Mullarney (136th), Conor Purcell (155th), James Sugrue (214th) and West of Ireland Amateur Open champion Mark Cadden from Roganstown also tee it up.
