The Sunday Post (Dundee)

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- By Adam =anigan sport@sundaypost.com

5avid =aw is swapping the snow of Aberdeen for a fortnight in the sunshine of South Africa.

But what he really pines for are the long summer days of the European golf season.

Law is heading to the SDC Championsh­ip in Port Elizabeth, which begins this Thursday, for his first event since withdrawin­g from the Indian Open with hip and back trouble last month.

The 31-year-old admits that the tournament is probably a bit early in his recovery. But, with a three-week break coming up either side of The Masters for most players on the DP World Tour, he just wants to get back on the course.

“I’ve only played five events this year and, in two of those, I wasn’t in the best of health,” he told The Sunday Post.

“If we were playing consecutiv­e weeks after South Africa, I probably would have missed this week.

“It feels maybe a week too soon – not in terms of fitness but preparatio­n. But I’m trying to think of it as a free-hit and to get my game in shape for Asia next month.

“It would be easy to moan, but I saw enough good stuff in my first three events of the season in the Middle East to be confident for the rest of the year.”

Law had his best-ever season on Tour last year, finishing in 49th place and making it to the seasonendi­ng DP World Tour Championsh­ip in Dubai.

Eager to kick on, the Aberdeen man spent the off-season working diligently on his game in an effort to improve.

There was an 11th place in Ras-al-khaimah, having led after 36 holes in early February. But, for now, it is a case of being patient as Law sits in 122nd place on the early standings for 2023.

However, he’s convinced he will reap long-term benefits of his work in the gym and on the practice range.

“You are always looking to improve, and I identified a couple of things,” said Law.

“I wanted to improve my driving, and one of the aspects was gaining a bit of distance.

“To do that, I worked hard in the gym, putting on a bit of weight and muscle. I wanted to gain extra clubhead speed, but then you need to adjust other parts of your game.

“You’re driving it further, however your eight-irons go further as well, so I have had to adjust my equipment, too.

“I have new irons in the bag for South Africa, which will control my distance and hopefully spin more.

“I worked hard with the guys at Wilson last week to get it right, so potentiall­y this could be the way forward.”

After this South Africa stint, Law will tee it up in Japan and South Korea in April, but he cannot wait for the stretch of European tournament­s to begin.

Flights will change from long-haul to short-haul, and nipping home between events will again be viable.

“It will be nice when all the long-haul travel is out of the way,” he admitted. “Then we can play all the great events in Europe over the summer.

“Some guys are great with all that travel. I’m probably not one of them.

“Some of the time difference­s are massive, and that really takes it out of you. It’s a tiring schedule.

“I’ll have only played nine events by the start of May over six months, which is not an awful lot.

“But I played 28 times last season, and that is probably a few too many. So I needed a bit of break after that and it’s why I took two months off.

“The plan was always to be ready when the meat of the season arrives.

“Ultimately, with the improvemen­ts I have been trying to make, I needed time at home more than I needed time on the course.

“I know the pros and cons of that decision. I’m confident with it, and I know I’ll have enough events in Europe from May onwards to get it right.”

 ?? ?? Aberdonian 5avid =aw is targeting a better run of results on tour
Aberdonian 5avid =aw is targeting a better run of results on tour

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