Friends Reunited for Wales in the Omega Mission Hills World Cup

(23 November – Shenzhen) Bradley Dredge and Stephen Dodd head to the Omega Mission Hills World Cup in China as ‘friends reunited’ hoping to repeat their success of two years ago.
 
The close friendship shared by the Welsh pair carried them to World Cup glory in Portugal in 2005 and both believe that camaraderie can lift them once again over the Olazábal course at Mission Golf Club, China, from November 22-25.
 
Dodd will always have fond memories of China having won his first European Tour title in Shanghai in the Volvo China Open at the start of the 2005 season, while Dredge is relishing a return to Mission Hills Golf Club, China, having previously visited the stunning golf complex for the Goodwill Trophy in 2006.
 
“I am looking forward to going over there again,” said Dredge. “I played in the Goodwill Trophy at Mission Hills last year and while it was on a different course, it is an incredible complex. Stephen has won in China and loves China so we are both really looking forward to playing again.
 
“The win in Portugal was huge for us and for golf in Wales. We enjoy the format, are good friends and enjoy playing together, which is important. Hopefully, we can put a good week together and contend.”
 
The history attached to the Omega Mission Hills World Cup is a further incentive for Dodd. He said: “It’s a big, historical event that you want to play in, and want to represent your country in. Of course, it’s one you want to win as well. Luckily, we’ve done that once and we hope to do it again.
 
“Bradley and I won two years ago in Portugal, and we’re great friends, which makes a big difference. We know each other’s game pretty well and we always enjoy each other’s company. There’s a bit more pressure when you’re playing with a partner, because you don’t want to let them down, so I’ll be trying my best to play well for Bradley, myself and Wales.
 
“It’s on a new course that I’m looking forward to visiting. And my first Tour win came in China, so it is a country that holds good memories for me.”
 
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.
 
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.
 
 

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’s 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.

Founded in 1994, Mission Hills Golf Club, China, seeks to create ‘International 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, José Maria Olazábal, 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’s 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).

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). 

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.