SWINDON’S David Howell is hoping that a bit of home support will lift his game as he tees off at the ISPS Honda Wales Open today.

Playing at Celtic Manor, which is the closest course to Swindon on the European Tour, Howell will be looking for a good finish to maintain his end of year push to play in the Race to Dubai.

The 39-year-old currently sits 49th position in the rankings with the top 60 making it through to the season finale.

The Broome Manor pro will be teeing off his round at 12.50pm alongside one of the home favourites, Welshman Bradley Dredge, and Italian Francesco Molinari.

Howell will be hoping to have a better time in Wales than he did last year when the Wiltshireman, who has been troubled by injury throughout his career, retired just two holes into his second round with a wrist injury.

The Swindon player will be coming off the back of a 41st place finish at the KLM Open in Holland last weekend and will be hoping to have addressed the driver problems that dogged him over the weekend.

“We’re in pretty good shape to make it through to the season ending in Dubai and I hope for some nice results and have a really big finish,” Howell added.

“I have a big tournament now in Wales on a course I haven’t done played well at recently.

“Being a Swindon lad though it is probably my closest course on the tour to home so I will be looking forward to some local home support.”

Joining Howell on the course will be a number of Ryder Cup players including Welsh-born Jamie Donaldson, former world number one Lee Westwood and Thomas Bjorn.

This is possibly the last the Wales Open to take place and Europe team captain Paul McGinley, who won the Wales Open in 2001, requested the Celtic Manor course to be set out like Gleneagles, the venue for the 2014 Ryder Cup.