Marcel Siem hopes an injury picked up en route to the Trophée Hassan II won’t hamper his title defence at Golf du Palais Royal this week.
The German won by three shots in Agadir 12 months ago to secure a third European Tour title.
But the 33 year old was forced to pull out of the pre-tournament Pro-Am after suffering a stiff neck on the flight to Morocco.
“It’s always great to come back here, even if the situation isn’t ideal,” said Siem.
“I was looking forward to playing the Pro-Am but my neck is very sore, so I was told by the physios that I had to rest it so unfortunately I had to withdraw.
“Even if it’s really painful in the morning I’m still going to try to play, because you don’t get the chance to defend your title too many times in your career.
“I flew out here on Tuesday afternoon and slept in a funny position on the flight, and it really stiffened up overnight. But as golfers we often get little niggles like this – it’s quite rare to be completely injury-free, so I’m sure I’ll be okay.”
Siem has made the cut in all four of his European Tour events this season, but is looking to get into contention on Sunday having not finished higher than 15th on The Race to Dubai this term.
“I feel like my golf game is good enough to win tournaments, but I also have to be realistic,” he added. “My putting hasn’t been too good so far this season, and to win any tournament you need all four parts of your game to come together. But there’s always a chance, and hopefully the saying that you should beware the injured boxer comes true this week. I just always feel very comfortable here, so I’m still positive that I can have a good week.
“I’ve just got back from the States, and I really struggle with the grass and the grain on the greens there. Whereas here I can see the breaks on the greens, so hopefully that can show in my putting stats this week.
“I also love the look and the feel of the course – I much prefer this classic style of course to the very modern design of courses you see nowadays. They have a much more artificial feel, but this place is just beautiful. It’s so quiet and peaceful, and I feel right at home here.”
