Oosthuizen focused on title defence

Louis Oosthuizen believes he will not be distracted by the imminent arrival of his second child when he defends his Africa Open title this week.

The new European Tour season kicks off on Oosthuizen’s home soil in South Africa at the East London Golf Club today with the 2010 Open winner looking to retain the title he won in a play-off a year ago.

The 29-year-old overcame Spaniard Manuel Quiros and England’s Chris Wood then but is perhaps under more pressure this time around, with his wife Nel-Mare expecting their second child.

“It is always fun defending a title so I’m just hoping that the week runs smoothly and that I don’t get a phone call from Nel-Mare or the doctor telling me to come home,” Oosthuizen said on europeantour.com. “But, funnily enough, sometimes it’s good to have your thoughts elsewhere and not solely on the golf. Of course, I’ll be focused on what I have to do on the course but in the back of my mind I’ll always be mentally checking on what’s going on at home.”

Oosthuizen insists last year’s win was particularly special. “Obviously winning The Open was a dream come true for me but it was always a dream of mine as well to win a co-sanctioned tournament on the European Tour back home in South Africa,” he said.

“I had come close in the past at the Dunhill a few years back when Ernie (Els) won and in the SA Open the year James Kingston won, so to do it at East London last year was very satisfying.

“It’s a course where there are not a lot of driver holes and you should try and keep it low if you can. There are some tight fairways so you have to be careful, but it’s also a golf course where, if you take it on and succeed, you can really shoot low numbers. It is not a long course, it is all about position.”

Also in the low-key field are Oosthuizen’s compatriot Retief Goosen and 2011 runner-up Wood.

In Hawaii, meanwhile, the list of who’s not at the season-opening Tournament of Champions reads more like a “Who’s Who”.

Missing are three of the four major champions – Charl Schwartzel, Darren Clarke and Rory McIlroy, who, at 22, already is on the very short list of golfers capable of capturing the imagination no matter where they play. If that’s not enough, three of the four World Golf Championship winners from last year are not at Kapalua, either.

Luke Donald, the No 1 player in the world, recently returned home from a year-end journey that took him from South Africa to Dubai to Australia. Adam Scott was home in Australia watching his girlfriend, Ana Ivanovic, win her opening match in the Brisbane International as she gets ready for first tennis grand slam of the year. Martin Kaymer of Germany is gearing up for his title defence in Abu Dhabi. So who’s left?

A 28-man field of PGA Tour winners, tying the record for the smallest field to start the tour season on the shores of Maui.

With apologies to USPGA champion Keegan Bradley, WGC winner Nick Watney and FedEx Cup champion Bill Haas, the biggest stars at Kapalua might be found in the broadcast booth. Johnny Miller and Nick Faldo have agreed to be co-analysts.

A year ago, the winners-only field at Kapalua had 19 of the top 40 in the world. Now there are 19 of the top 100. The only two players from the top ten are Steve Stricker and Webb Simpson. The tour no longer starts with trumpets blaring. It’s more like a solo on the ukulele. Then again, this is nothing new.

Phil Mickelson caused a ripple when he stopped coming to Kapalua in 2002. Tiger Woods caused more of a tidal wave when he decided not to play in 2006, and he hasn’t been back since (although he hasn’t been eligible the last two years). The tour has toyed with the idea of expanding the field, either by inviting all past winners at Kapalua (Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, Jim Furyk and Geoff Ogilvy) or by offering a two-year exemption to the Tournament of Champions for PGA Tour winners.

Of the 11 players who aren’t at Kapalua, most have a valid reason. Brandt Snedeker, Fredrik Jacobson and Dustin Johnson are recovering from injuries. Kaymer and Clarke aren’t even PGA Tour members, and might want to save their starts for later in the year.

Justin Rose’s wife just gave birth to their second child. And with winners coming from all over the world, respect must be shown to the worldwide game. Padraig Harrington never played in the tournament because this is when he traditionally takes his break from a long season. That’s the case for McIlroy and Donald. Schwartzel has tournaments in his South Africa homeland.

Graeme McDowell had a blast at Kapalua last year, especially when he shot 62 on the last day and finished third. Coming off a frenetic finish to his 2010 season that took him across oceans, however, he realises now that he would have been better served taking an entire month off.