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Do you believe in 498th time lucky? 

David Drysdale surely does. 

With just 18 holes to play in this year’s Qatar Masters, the Dunbar man is a great position to win his first European Tour title, just two events shy of his 500th appearance on the circuit.

The 44-year-old enters the final round of the tournament in a tie for second and just a shot adrift of leader Jorge Campillo. 

Drysdale – whose bogey-free 64 was the second lowest round of the day – will join the Spaniard and Dane Jeff Winther in the final group at Education City GC in Doha as he looks to land that elusive first win. 

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“I started quite well, I was four under through six holes and I just holed a couple of nice putts,” he told the European Tour after signing his card. “In the middle of the round, I struggled a wee bit and hit a lot to 40 or 50 feet but managed to two-putt them and move on and capitalise on my good shots.

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Prior to this week, Drysdale’s best finish has been runner-up on three different occasions: the 2006 Russian Open, the 2009 Open de Andalucia and the 2019 Alfred Dunhill Championship.

However, with wife Vicky alongside him on the bag, he’s hopeful that tomorrow can be his long-awaited day.

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“We’re getting older together but we’re enjoying each other’s company on the golf course,” he said.

“The first couple of seasons worked very well. I haven’t played the best the last 14 months or so. I’ve been grinding away but we haven’t fallen out yet.”

In case you’re wondering, the European Tour record for the most starts before winning currently belongs to England’s Malcolm MacKenzie, the Englishman’s 2002 French Open victory coming on his 509th appearance. 


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Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor

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