Thailand-based all-rounder likes life in the fast lane

SCOTS EXILE SIMON YATES GETS
HIS KICKS RACING CARS

Scotland’s Simon Yates is hoping that some inside knowledge will help him finish an injury-interrupted year on a high note with victory in next month’s US$650,000 Volvo Masters of Asia at Thai Country Club.
Yates, who is based in Thailand, will have Thai Country Club professional Daniel Wyborn on the bag for the Asian Tour’s season-ending event from December 14-17.
“Last year I was joint ninth. I played nicely but did not putt great. I did not know the greens very well,” said Yates, a two-time winner on the Asian Tour.
“Hopefully this year, Daniel Wyborn is going to caddy for me. He works there and plays there all the time so he knows the greens really well. So maybe I can putt better. It is always good to have a bit of inside knowledge.”
A shoulder injury kept the 36-year-old Scot off the circuit earlier in the year and he has struggled for consistency since his return in August. He is currently ranked 30th on the Asian Tour's UBS Order of Merit with winnings of US$109,842 but a recent change of putter could see an upswing in his fortunes.
NO CONSISTENCY
“It has been a pretty slow season for me. I have not had any consistency - played great one round, not so good the next,” said Yates. “My putting has not been great. I have gone back to an old putter which is about 12 years old and my statistics might come down. My short game is getting better. Hopefully I can finish the year with a good result.”
Yates, an all-round sportsman who represented Scotland as a downhill skier and now races sports cars, rates Thai Country Club as one of the best venues in Asia. “I think it is a great golf course, one of the best we play condition wise all year. As a golf course, it is very fair,” he said.
The course has been lengthened and toughened up since India’s Shiv Kapur won last year’s Volvo Masters of Asia with a score of 20-under-par 268.
“I played there recently and they are bringing the rough up and it is really tough. If you do not drive it straight it is going to be a difficult golf course. There again, it is like any golf course, if you drive it straight it makes it a lot easier,” added Yates, known to his peers as “The Wee Man”.
“They have two or three new tees, the rough is up and it is going to be very difficult. I do not think we will see 20 under par winning this year. More like 12 or 13 under. We will see.”
Yates lists Jyoti Randhawa, 2004 champion and last year’s runner up, fellow Indian Jeev Milkha Singh, seeking a Volvo hat-trick after his magnificent victories in the Volvo China Open and the Volvo Masters, 2003 winner Thongchai Jaidee and another local favourite, Prayad Marksaeng, as the players to beat.
SUPERCAR WINNER
“Jyoti is always going to be a good bet. He drives the ball well and he has been playing well recently,” said Yates. “Thongchai Jaidee and Prayad Marksaeng will also be in the frame. And Jeev, with his confidence and the way he has been playing, will be up there.”
Yates is making a bit of a name for himself in the fast lane with a first place finish under his belt in the Thailand Supercar Series.
“I enjoy car racing. I did six races this year and I have got an endurance race coming up on January 6. I like the adrenaline pumping through me. I have a need for speed. It is really good fun, a nice hobby,” said Yates of his new passion.
“The pressure is a lot different from golf. When you are on the grid and the red lights are going out one by one that is when your heart is pumping. But the minute you have started you do not even notice (the nerves).
“It is not like golf. Golf is a lot different. When you are on the first tee you feel your heart beating. Then you have time for the nerves to settle before the second shot. You have a lot of time to think.
“Motor racing is a total reaction sport, which is great. I love that sort of thing. There is not too much time to think which is good for me - I think too much on the golf course.”