Liam Johnston teams up with top European Tour caddie in Abu Dhabi

Liam Johnston is among eight Scots teeing up in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship - the opening event of 2019 on the European Tour

The Dumfries man has Ken Herring on his bag for the first time as he joins seven other Scots in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, which starts on Wednesday.

Herring had a lengthy spell with Marc Warren and, most recently, worked for Thomas Bjorn, last year’s winning Ryder Cup captain in France.

“I’m just trying to figure out what’s right for me at the moment in regards of a caddie,” said Johnston, one of the four Scots to graduate from the Challenge Tour last season.

“Ken’s had 30-odd years experience out here and I think he will be a great asset on the bag.

“This is my first year out here. Last year on the Challenge Tour I didn’t have a caddie that often and it’s just a case of figuring out what’s going to be right for me.”

Johnston, a two-time winner on the Challenge Tour last year, joins Bob MacIntyre, Grant Forrest and David Law in getting a first outing in a Rolex Series event.

“When you are walking out on the fairways and see the grandstands etc, you are aware this a proper tournament set up. It is brilliant and a great way to start the year,” admitted Johnston

“You are going to have to play well to score well round here. There’s no flaking it on this course. But I’m looking forward to getting the week going.”

An early alarm call has been placed as he’s out in one of the first groups at 7.20am local time with South African Justin Walters and England’s David Horsey.

“It is nice to be hitting my first shot of 2019 in one of the first groups out,” said Johnston. “I’m not looking forward to the alarm but it will be nice to play the first nine holes on a fresh golf course. It will be good fun.”

Law was the second last man into the field, learning that he’d got in after arriving in the UAE late on Sunday night.

“It’s a great tournament and it’s an added bonus for me getting in,” admitted the Aberdonian, who won the SSE Scottish Hydro Challenge in Aviemore last season.

“I didn’t think I was going to get in a few weeks ago, but I did quite a lot of work last week anticipating that I was going to make it and I’m looking forward to it.

“It’s a really good test out there. The fairways are tight and the rough is thick. It’s probably not the one you’d want for your first week of the year.

“But it’s a great tournament and a great golf course. If you play well, you’ll be rewarded. But, if you struggle off the tee, it will be tough.”

Before leaving, Law talked to his mentor Paul Lawrie, a regular in this event over the years but missing on this occasion as he recovers from a foot operation, about this week’s tough test.

“We played 15 holes at Royal Aberdeen on Friday and discussed the course,” he added. “Paul said it is a driver’s course and he thinks it should suit my game. I certainly like the set up.”

As does McIntyre, who is hoping to take up where he left off when recording top-15 finishes in both the South African Open and Alfred Dunhill Championship in his final two events in 2015.

“What a golf course this is,” declared the 22-year-old left-hander from Oban. “It’s a real test. It tests every part of your game - from driving to the short game.

“It’s as good a course as I’ve played. I like a golf course that is a bit longer and also a bit tighter. That puts a premium on tee to green and that’s where I feel my game can be strong.

“I’m trying to push on from the end of last year. In golf you don’t really know what’s coming next but if I keep doing what I’m doing it will keep trending in the right direction.”

Out in the group behind Johnston’s one, MacIntyre will have Richie Ramsay as one of his playing partners.

“I played with Richie when I was an amateur in the Dunhill,” he recalled. I played with Eduardo De La Riva and Richie was the other pro in the group.

“That was good. I always dreamt of being in the situation where I’d be playing with the likes of him as a pro. It’s here now and I’ve got to try and take advantage of it.”

Forrest, who has already chalked up a top-10 finish this season, is also looking forward to his opportunity to shine in a field that is being headed by American duo Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson.

“It was as nice surprise getting in here as I didn’t think I’d get in either here or next week in Dubai and I’m now close to that, too,” said the North Berwick man.

“It is really exciting to play in big events like this on great golf courses with great set ups and with some of the top players in the world.

“I played this course only once before when I was out in the UAE with Scotland at a winter training camp.

“It’s a similar style to some of the courses I’ve played in Dubai, though the rough is up this week and the fairways have been brought in a bit. It’s a tough but fair set up.

“Here it helps to hit it long off the tee but you have to be straight as well. On the Challenge Tour, there are some courses where you don’t have to hit drivers a lot - it’s more about position.

“There are also some where you can smash it anywhere due to the fact there’s not much rough. This is a combination of both.”