(18 September 2007 ?Shenzhen) Mission Hills golf club, the world抯 No. 1 golf club, is delighted to welcome many of the world抯 greatest championship golfers to China, and their participation in the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup. Amongst those vying for 揟he Honour?in what has been termed the 揙lympics of Golf?is host nation China抯 Zhang Lian-wei, the first Chinese golfer to win on the European Tour and Lian Wen-Chong, the most recent player from China to win on The European Tour, having secured a victory in Singapore earlier this season.
For Zhang, this will be his second time representing China to play in a World Cup event hosted at Mission Hills, having come in 27th in the 1995 tournament, Zhang globally ranked 498 and Lian at 103 will unite to bring honour to the country at this year's Omega Mission Hills World Cup. Commenting on his return mission to the Club, Zhang said, "I am very much looking forward to participating in the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup, I believe between Lian and myself we will put forward a strong and united team that is capable of generating more than a few surprises."
A total of 28 nations will be battling it out for this most prestigious and distinguished trophies in golf ?the World Cup, which is to be played out over Mission Hills' (Jos?Maria) Olaz醔al designed championship course, which carries the stamp of the 1994 and 1999 Masters Champion. Today's 18 teams will be joined by the remaining ten teams to qualify in tournaments being conducted in Asia and Latin America from September 27-30.
Indeed, Mission Hills' signature championship course designer himself - Jos?Maria Olaz醔al of Spain, globally ranked 51 will also be competing in the event and has selected close friend, Miguel Angel Jim閚ez, ranked 61, to represent the Spanish flag in the tournament. Jim閚ez a World Cup veteran came close to success three years ago when Spain finished runner-up, one shot behind England, over another Olaz醔al-designed course, Real Club de Golf Sevilla.
Three Major Champions will tee up in the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup along with a host of global winners too, including Jos?Maria Olaz醔al, Retief Goosen of South Africa and Mike Weir of Canada.
Two-time US Open Champion Goosen globally ranked 17 has selected fellow countryman Trevor Immelman ranked 18 to represent South Africa. Goosen like Zhang will be making his second appearance at a Mission Hills hosted World Cup, where he came in 12th in 1995. Speaking on his participation in the event Goosen said, "I am very much looking forward to representing my country at the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup, it is with an enormous sense of pride that one commences such an undertaking." Meanwhile, 2003 Masters Champion Weir, globally ranked 45, will announce his pairing in due course.
Scotland's Colin Montgomerie, the eight-time European Tour Order of Merit winner, globally ranked 44 will join forces with Marc Warren, ranked 127, in an attempt to go one better than last year in Barbados when the same partnership lost out to Germany in a sudden-death play-off.
Justin Rose globally ranked 13 has invited his close friend, Ian Poulter, ranked 31 to represent England, and who were successful in 2004 and prior to that in 1998 in bringing the World Cup trophy home.
The United States will be represented by Arron Oberholser, globally ranked 25 and Sean O'Hair, ranked 71 while 2005 winners, Stephen Dodd, globally ranked 229 and Bradley Dredge, ranked 46, of Wales, are reunited in a bid to wrest back the trophy.
On hearing the announcement of the field thus far confirmed to play in the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup, Dr. David Chu, Chairman of Mission Hills Group, said, "The nations represented truly demonstrate International Goodwill through Golf, and the golf fans in China and Mission Hills are looking forward to welcoming players from around the world and bringing a new era for golf development in China."
Confirmed countries and partners (where applicable) are:
Argentina: Andres Romero and Ricardo Gonzalez
Australia: Nick O扝ern
Austria: Markus Brier
Canada: Mike Weir
China: Liang Wen-Chong and Zhang Lian-wei
Denmark: Anders Hansen and S鴕en Hansen
England: Justin Rose and Ian Poulter
France: Rapha雔 Jacquelin and Gregory Havret
Finland: Mikko Ilonen and Pasi Purhonen
Germany: Martin Kaymer and Alex Cejka
India: Jyoti Randhawa and Gaurev Ghei
Japan: Hideto Tanihara
Scotland: Colin Montgomerie and Marc Warren
South Africa: Retief Goosen and Trevor Immelman
Spain: Jos?Maria Olaz醔al and Miguel Angel Jim閚ez
Sweden: Robert Karlsson and Peter Hanson
United States: Arron Oberholser and Sean O扝air
The 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup will launch a new and exciting era in the history of the event first played in 1953 as the Canada Cup. The event is set to continue through 2018, and most probably beyond, at Mission Hills following the signing of an agreement which brought the prestige watch manufacturer Omega together with the Club which introduced the game of golf to China by first hosting the World Cup in 1995. The 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup, has a prize purse valued at $5,000,000.
John Jay Hopkins, the noted Canadian industrialist, brought to reality a dream that golf could promote goodwill between nations with the inaugural World Cup played in Montreal in 1953 then called the Canada Cup and re-titled The World Cup in 1967.
The International Federation of PGA Tours will, as custodians, oversee the 53rd edition of the event as it unfolds less than one year before the staging in Beijing of the Olympic Games at which Omega has a unique role as Official Timekeeper.
ABOUT OMEGA
The prestige watch manufacturer OMEGA was founded in Switzerland in 1848 and since then has continually set the pace in the many fields of watchmaking, from sports timekeeping and design awards to watches for professional use in space or underwater.
OMEGA is closely associated with a world of achievements including the conquest of space, timekeeping at 22 Olympic Games and numerous precision records as well as the launch in 1999 of the revolutionary Co-Axial calibre, one of the 20th century抯 major innovations in mechanical watchmaking designed with the English master watchmaker George Daniels. OMEGA will be Official Timekeeper for the Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010 and London 2012 Olympic Games.
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ABOUT MISSION HILLS GOLF CLUB, CHINA
Founded in 1994, Mission Hills Golf Club, China, seeks to create 慖nternational Goodwill through Golf.?The Club occupies over 15 square kilometres of land and boasts 12 signature courses designed by golf legends from five different continents.
The Jack Nicklaus, Pete Dye, Jos?Maria Olaz醔al, Ernie Els, Nick Faldo, Zhang Lian-Wei, David Leadbetter, Greg Norman, Jumbo Ozaki, Vijay Singh, Annika Sorenstam and David Duval. Each course is reflective of the designers?style, offering unique risk / reward challenges to the player.
As a complete golf destination, the Club houses a five star hotel and world class spa and was voted Best Golf Resort in Asia by readers of Asian Golf Monthly in 2006 and Golf Resort of the Year in the Rest of the World category in 2005 by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO). In May 2004, the Club was accredited by the Guinness World RecordsTM as the World抯 Largest Golf Facility, making a name for itself in the world of premier golf through its exceptional ability to deliver an unsurpassed level of service excellence. Mission Hills is the proud venue of the OMEGA Mission Hills World Cup for the next consecutive twelve years (2007 ?2018).
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ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL GOLF ASSOCIATION
Established by Canadian industrialist John Jay Hopkins in 1953, the International Golf Association has pursued the mission of "International Goodwill through Golf" for over fifty years. As the owner of the World Cup name, IGA has sanctioned the world's most prestigious international team golf competition throughout six decades. IGA is governed by its Board of Directors, comprised by Chairman Jonathan S. Linen (Advisor to the Chairman, American Express), Deane R. Beman (Former PGA TOUR Commissioner), J. B. McCoy (Retired Chairman, Bank One Corporation) and Bill Souders (Former Executive Vice-President and Director, Xerox Corporation).
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ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF PGA TOURS
The International Federation of PGA Tours, formed in 1996, was created to enhance the competitive structure of professional golf worldwide while preserving the traditions and strengths of the six member Tours. The member Tours are the Asian Tour, European Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA TOUR, PGA Tour of Australasia and Southern Africa Tour. The Canadian Tour and the Tour de las Americas are Associate Members of the Federation.
Three major initiatives were outlined: the formation of the International Federation of PGA Tours; joint sanctioning by the members of the International Federation of PGA Tours of significant competitions for the game's top players; and a structure for a generally accepted worldwide ranking system.
For further information, contact:
Communications Division
The European Tour
Tel: +44 (0) 1344 840400
Fax: +44 (0) 1344 840444
Email: media@europeantour.com
James Cramer
PGA TOUR
Tel: +1 904 273 3293
Fax: +1 904 273 3582
Email: jcramer@pgatourhq.com
Tracey Robertson
Communications Department
Mission Hills Golf Club
Tel: +86 755 2802 0888 Ext: 36030
Fax: +86 755 2802 5751
Email: traceyrobertson@missionhillsgroup.com
OMEGA
OMEGA International Press Office
Tel: +41 (0) 32 343 92 11
Fax: +41 (0) 32 343 97 15
Email: press@omega.ch |