The first European Senior Tour event played on a nine-hole course wasn’t to the liking of the two Australians in the field, Peter Fowler and Mike Harwood both finding the going tough at the Sharjah Senior Golf Masters.

The Sharjah Golf and Shooting Club proved a stern test for the pair, Fowler sneaking into red figures for the 54 holes and Harwood finishing even par.

Rounds of 71-72-71 saw Fowler post a 2-under total and a share of 23^rd place in the 57 player field while Harwood will rue a second round 76 to go with bookend rounds of 70 on his way to a T31 finish.

The experimental tournament saw South Africa’s Chris Williams, a regular competitor on the PGA Legends Tour the past two years, claim a second career European Senior Tout title in a playoff over England’s Gary Marks.

The pair finished 13-under-par for the 54 holes on the course which saw the par-3 and par-5 holes moving tees from the front to back-9.