9:37am Thursday 25th February 2010
Rayleigh golf professional Mark Hooper made a solid start to life on the Alps Tour.
The 25-year-old golfer finished in joint 19th place after making the cut and finishing two under par at the 72 par Golf de Mogador at Essaouira course in Morocco.
Now Hooper is hoping to kick on when he travels to Valencia, Spain, next month for the Peugeot Tour Valencia.
But he is mindful of how much it is costing to compete on the tour and is looking for companies interested in forming a commercial partnership with him.
“I played really well early on and did get into a better position than that, but I was pleased to finish in the top 20 in the first event of the season,” said Hooper, who carded scores of 72, 71 and 71.
“The standard was what I expected it to be but it was a difficult course, which was designed by Gary Player, and so my scoring was good on that course.
“I could have come away in a better position but it was a nice start.”
Hooper admitted the standard of play was better than he was used to before joining the tour this year and that meant he was practising as much as possible.
The poor weather has made it difficult for Hooper to prepare in England and he is travelling to Spain to practise ahead of the second tournament of the tour at Club de Golf El Escorpion.
“I went out to Spain practising in December to keep me going and I’m trying to get away as much as I can to get ready for the season,” added Hooper, who has been attached to Rayleigh Driving Range for five years.
“It is coming in handy because I do not want to get too rusty before a tournament as many of the other golfers come from all over Europe and are not so affected by the weather.
“The problem is that going out to these places is expensive and there is no prize money when you are practising.”
Hooper admitted he was fortunate to have secured sponsorship again from Bill Doughty through his Oakroom company, but said that the money would not cover his costs for the whole of the tour.
“Bill supported me last year and has done the same again this year and I’m very grateful to him for that,” said Hooper, who aims to qualify for the full European Tour this year. “As I will be flying all over Europe it will be very expensive and playing a full season is going to be costly.”
Hooper is therefore keen to hear from companies that would be prepared to sponsor him in a commercial partnership that would see the golfer advertise their name in Britain and in Europe.
He said he had already been on Sky Sports television and was hoping to offer firms an opportunity for exposure while helping him at the same time.
Anyone interested in sponsoring Hooper can contact him at hoopergolf@hotmail.co.uk or on 07903 411192.
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