It is difficult to imagine any competitor in the field for this week’s Moroccan Open at Dar-es-Salem in Rabat looking forward to pegging it up on the Red Course more than Roger Chapman.
For as well as making a swift return to the venue where he won the Hassan II Trophy last November, the 15th event on the 2001 European Tour International Schedule will edge the 41 year old Englishman closer to a significant milestone in golfing history.
At present there are only five golfers in the annals of the European Tour who have played 500 or more events in their professional career, Sam Torrance, Eamonn Darcy, Des Smyth, Carl Mason and Mark James.
But Chapman is about to join them. Barring illness or injury, Morocco will be his 498th European Tour start, the Open de España at El Saler his 499th, before the Algarve Open de Portugal at Quinta do Lago on April 26-29 completes the 500.
“It will give me a good deal of satisfaction to look back and say I’ve achieved that particular milestone,” said Chapman. “You look back and see 500 tournaments and perhaps initially think it’s not all that many. But when you’re only playing in the region of 25 a year, I suppose it’s not too bad going really.”
Consistency has been the watchword for the bulk of Chapman’s career, proof being the fact that only twice in the years from 1982 to 1998 did he finish outside the top 60 on the Volvo Order of Merit.
Ironically, however, the last two years could not have bucked that trend more sharply. Firstly there was the shattering disappointment of losing his playing privileges at the end of the 1999 season when he finished 125th on the Volvo Order of Merit before bravely regaining them at that year’s Qualifying School in San Roque.
If that was the nadir, the zenith came three months into the 2000 season in South America where he won his maiden European Tour title, beating Padraig Harrington in a play-off to win the Brazil Rio de Janeiro 500 Years Open at Itanhangá.
“It has been up and down, I’ll admit that,” said Chapman. “My low obviously came when I missed my card. I was distraught but I recovered well going to the School and I suppose that showed a little bit of character.
“It’s fair to say that 1999 was an absolute low point and then five months later my highest point came along when I won. It is amazing how it goes sometimes, isn’t it?
So with 500 tournaments almost in the bag, is Chapman tempted to look ahead to the next half century of competition? “I don’t know about that, but the good thing is that my appetite for the game is still strong,” he admitted.
“Today for example I had a day off and I’ve just been down to Sunningdale Golf Club with a couple of friends having a hit – I just enjoy playing golf, it’s as simple as that.
“When all what happened to me happened in 1999 I suppose it gave me a bit of kick up the backside. But then winning in 2000 made me appreciate why you play the game - you just get your appetite back and I’m just enjoying it so much again.”
Although Chapman’s biggest win financially came in Brazil, his victory in the Hassan II Trophy gave him almost as much satisfaction coming, as it did, on a course he rates as one of his favourites.
“I can’t wait to go back, I really can’t, because the course is magnificent,” said Chapman. “There is not a bad hole on it, there is no let-up, and every hole demands your attention so you have to concentrate all the way round.
“It is a par 73 and I won with a 15 under par total. I think the winning score could well be about that again, depending on the weather. But the course is always in pretty good condition and in my opinion, it is one of the best we play all year, it really is as good as that.
“The par threes are very good and the signature hole of the course would be the short ninth with the island green. It’s a strong finish as well, the 16th, 17th and 18th are very good holes.
“The 16th is a dog leg left par four of about a drive and a seven iron to a slightly raised green. The 17th is a really good long par three and then the 18th is 555 yards long, dog leg left to a smallish green so if you do get a good drive away you can have a go with your second shot, but it is a difficult target to hit.”
Roger Chapman has been faced with many difficult targets during his 20 years on the European Tour, but has never shirked the challenge. This week in Morocco will be no different.