When New Zealand golfer Ryan Fox tees off in Ras Al Khaimah in the UAE tomorrow night, it could be his last DP World Tour event for nearly three months.
The 35-year-old is playing the last event of a four-week Middle East swing, having missed the cut at the samevenue last week. He heads back to New Zealand next week for what shapes as his final stint in MIQ and after that, things are very much up in the air.
The DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour) has a tournament in Kenya and two in South Africa in March, which Fox was always scheduled to miss. It's then supposed to resume with a tournament at an as yet unnamed venue in Asia (April 14-17), followed by the ISPS Handa Championship in Japan (April 21-24) and the China Open in Shenzhen (April 28-May 1).
However, Fox says due to the ever-changing Covid situation, there is no guarantee that the Asian swing will go ahead and his next confirmed event will be the British Masters at the Belfry from May 5-8.
"They still talk of the Asian events going ahead and they're still on the schedule, but there's a little bit of uncertainty with Covid and the travel restrictions," Fox explained.
"I'm sort of hoping by the time I get out of MIQ at the end of February, there might be a bit more certainty and I'll know what's going on. Europe's definitely locked in for me and it would be good to play a couple events a little bit closer to home in Asia on the way.
"If they don't go ahead then I guess I will be playing a little bit of catch-up again like last year."
Ryan Fox plays a shot during the Dubai Desert Classic at Emirates Golf Club in January. Photo / Getty
Fox is hoping for a big finish in the Middle East, which has consisted of a tie for 61st at the Abu Dhabi Championship, a tie for 25th at the Dubai Desert Classic and missing the cut last week in Ras Al Khaimah.
But he has revealed he suffered from back spasms in his second round which contributed to the disappointing result.
"I woke up on Friday morning and my back basically completely locked up and got worse throughout the round. I was just hanging on the last few holes pretty much to give myself a chance to make the cut.
"Probably missing the cut and having a couple of days off and getting some treatment was more beneficial than trying to play on the weekend. And my physio is here this week, and everything's feeling a whole lot better and I am raring to go."
Fox is optimistic he will be 100 per cent by the time he tees off.
"I've taken it pretty easy this week. I hit a few balls on Sunday just to see if it locked up again and it did a little bit but it was alright. I've played nine holes the last couple of days and haven't done too much other stuff and certainly haven't hit many range balls.
"It felt a bit average on Monday after playing but felt a whole lot better today. I've had a couple of treatments and will have another before I tee off. So I'm giving myself the best chance to be physically fit."
Fox is looking forward to returning home next week in what should be his last stint in MIQ.
"If I could stay on for an extra few weeks and do home isolation, I'd probably be keen on doing that. But unfortunately, I've got nothing to really play and obviously the family is at home and I'm pretty keen to get back and see them.
"I'll just have to suck up being in a hotel again, for 10 days, and obviously it's a little a little bit frustrating. At least it looks like we're moving forward in that sense.
"I think by the time we get to Europe everything's seeming like it's opening up pretty quickly over there now, a whole lot less restrictions on travel, a whole lot less paperwork, and testing and everything to do for travel. So it looks like from May onwards for us, everything's going to be a lot closer to normal."
Meanwhile, New Zealand's Omicron outbreak continues to upend the local golfing season, with organisers of the New Zealand PGA Championship announcing the postponement of this year's event until 2023, following the cancellation of the New Zealand Open.
"As with the Open, border restrictions for overseas players and ongoing uncertainties around Covid settings make it impossible for us to stage an Australasian Tour event at this point in time," said Andrew Clements, Chairman of the PGA of New Zealand.
