China Golf, 中国高尔夫

June 9, 2009: Former martial arts champion Wu Weihuang will be at the forefront of the mainland challenge at this week’s Luxehills Golf Championship in Chengdu following the withdrawal of Alex Wu Ashun from the Omega China Tour event.

Wu Ashun, the 23-year-old Asian Tour star, pulled out on Tuesday with a lower-back problem, a similar injury to the one that had earlier forced Zhang Lianwei out of the Luxehills event, which will feature live television coverage on Saturday and Sunday.

Wu Weihuang, who held off Wu Ashun to win his first career title at the season-opening Dell Championship in Xiamen , believes the local players will rise to the occasion at the Luxehills International Country Club despite the withdrawal of arguably the two leading mainland pros in the field.

“We have a good number of Chinese players who can win, not just Zhang Lianwei and Wu Ashun, and I would count myself among those players. It really just depends who has a good week,” said Wu, who finished joint-seventh at Luxehills last September and eighth in last year’s Omega Order of Merit.

Chinese Taipei’s Tsai Chi-huang is among the pre-tournament favourites after winning last year’s event with an 18-under total of 270, an Omega China Tour record. Many eyes will also be on the PGA Tour of Australasia contingent headed by Kurt Barnes, who won April’s Sofitel Zhongshan IGC Open in Nanjing .

Wu sized up another couple of pre-tournament favourites on Monday when he played a practice round with Chinese Taipei’s Lu Wen-teh, the five-time Asian Tour winner, and American C.J. Gatto, 24, winner of this year’s Qualifying School and joint-fourth in Xiamen .

“I have a lot more belief in my game since winning in Xiamen . It has opened the door for me for more success,” Wu said. “I waited a long time for that first win, but having done it once, I think it will be easier to win a second time.”

Wu is a former Fujian champion in the martial art of Nanquan, a contemporary form of Wushu. Now 41, he only took up golf in his late 20s after being introduced to the sport by a business colleague, but his athletic background has propelled him to become one of China ’s top players.

“I’ve become a lot physically stronger after working out in the gym more regularly since the winter and this has helped me stay strong on the course,” Wu said. “I’m hitting my driver between 20-30 yards longer than before, which is giving me more chances to attack pins.”

Liao Guiming and Yuan Hao, second and third at Luxehills last year, Li Chao, the eight-time Omega China Tour winner, Zhou Jun and Wu Kangchun are also among the leading mainland pros competing at Luxehills.

The CCTV Golf and Tennis Channel, Shanghai Sports Channel and Shenzhen Sports Channel will air live coverage of the Luxehills Golf Championship on Saturday and Sunday from 1.00-3.00pm.

Live television marks a significant step for the Omega China Tour, which this year has featured record purses and invited pros from the PGA Tour of Australasia and the Mercedes-Benz Tour of Sou the ast Asia.

www.omegachinatour.com

Kurt Barnes_creditworldsportgroup

 

Barnes, renowned as ‘Australia’s John Daly’, held off Thailand’s Wisut Artjanawat and China’s Zhang Lianwei to win April’s Sofitel Zhongshan IGC Open in Nanjing, where 10 Australians competed on the Omega China Tour for the first time.

Kurt Barnes_creditworldsportgroup

  

Tristan Lambert and Brad Andrews, both yoga enthusiasts, and Michael Moore, also a professional tennis coach, are also playing their second successive Omega China Tour event after competing in Nanjing.

 

The big-hitting Barnes, who turned 28 on May 25, will be the star attraction at the Luxehills International Country Club after his impressive Sofitel victory, which followed an 11th-place finish at the Volvo China Open and marked his first victory since the 2005 Victorian Open.

 

“Winning my first overseas title in China was a huge achievement for me, so it would be great to win another trophy at Luxehills,” said Barnes, who won RMB225,000 in Nanjing.

 

“The quality of the Australian players going to Chengdu is as good, if not stronger, than those in Nanjing, so it will be interesting to see how we do at Luxehills.”

 

Barnes, who regularly drives between 330-340 yards, is rediscovering the form that made him one of his country’s most promising players in his early 20s, when he won the 2002 Australian Amateur Championship.

 

After turning pro in October 2003, he won the Queensland PGA Championship in November 2004 and the Victorian Open two months later, but had to wait over four years for his next trophy.

 

“Everybody was really happy for me when I got back to Australia,” said Barnes, who played with Zhang Lianwei in the final two rounds in Nanjing. “Becoming the first Australian to win on the Omega China Tour is a massive thing to have on my resume, so it will be great to play again in China.”

 

Lambert, runner-up in the 2006 Queensland Open and 2007 Victorian PGA Championship, was also keen to return to the Omega China Tour after finishing tied for 21st at the Sofitel Zhongshan IGC Open.

 

“The cooperation between the two Tours is a great initiative. It’s great for us personally and I think the Australian players will do well,” said the 26-year-old. “From what I’ve seen so far, the Omega China Tour is really well run and the signage, marquee and spectator stands give it a very professional atmosphere.”

 

Anthony Brown, Matthew Griffin, Tom Prowse, Josh Lane, Rowan Beste and Lucas Bates make up the10 PGA Tour of Australasia entries for Luxehills.

 

Zhang, a six-time Omega China Tour champion, and eight-time winner Li Chao will be among theleading Chinese pros at Luxehills along with Dell Championship winner Wu Weihuang, Omega Championship winner Zhou Jun, big-hitting Yuan Hao and Chengdustar Huang Mingjie.

 

Chinese Taipei’s Tsai Chi-huang will also be among thefavourites after winning last year’s event with a Tour-record 18-under total of 270. The field will include up to two invites from each of Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong and Macau, and 10 foreigners from Qualifying School.

 

 

ENDS

 

 

For high-res photos

Visit the Gallery at www.omegachinatour.com and click on any image to access the high-resolution option. Credit: World Sport Group.

 

For further information

Please contact John Higginson, Media Manager, World Sport Group (East Asia). Email: j.higginson@worldsportgroup.com.hk. Tel: +852 2891-2000. Mobile: +852 6626-1443.

 

About theLuxehills International Country Club

Luxehills International Country Club is Chengdu’s most central golf club and part of theLuxehills International Community, the most prominent real estate project in China’s southwest region. The project was developed by Wide Horizon Real Estate Co. Ltd. The golf club is renowned for its beautiful landscape and spectacular scenery and includes a North American-style clubhouse, an 18-hole championship course by JMP Golf Design Group and international-standard facilities. Firmly established in China’s golfing community, Luxehills was voted Favourite Course of the Year by the players on the 2008 Omega China Tour and hosted the 2008 National Golf Clubs General Managers Conference.

Luxehills Golf Championship

 May 22, 2009: Mark Hollinger of the JMP Golf Design Group believes the Omega China Tour record total set at last year’s inaugural Luxehills Golf Championship in Chengdu will not be under threat in next month’s second edition.

 Last September, Chinese Taipei’s Tsai Chi-huang shot four rounds in the 60s for an 18-under total of 270 at the Luxehills International Country Club, while another 11 players finished under par.

Tsai at Luxehills-Creditworldsportgroup

“I expected thewinning score to be between 10-under and 12-under, so I was surprised when Tsai shot 18-under,” said Hollinger, who designed the 7,335-yard, par-72 layout. “I don’t expect 18-under this year, but if the green speed is quick, I’d expect the top players to shoot between 12-under and 15-under.” 

Hollinger also designed theLongxi Hotspring Golf Club in Beijing, which hosted last year’s season-ending Omega Championship, where only champion Zhou Jun finished under-par.

“I thought the scores would be the other way around as Longxi Hotspring is a wider course, but the greens were really quick and the rough was really long, which made it tough,” Hollinger said.

This year’s Luxehills Golf Championship offers an increased purse of RMB1 million and will be held from June 11-14, an ideal time for thePaspalum fairways and rough, while balmy early-summer weather is expected in the Sichuan capital.

“The course will be in perfect condition for thetournament, as Paspalum is a perennial warm-weather grass so will be in top condition in June,” Hollinger said. “Also, compared to last year, the trees are getting bigger and there are more properties around the course, which suits the landscaping.”

Last year big-hitting Yuan Hao set thepace with an opening 66, while top amateur Zhang Xinjun shot a 66 on day two to lead on 11-under. Tsai, a former Asian Tour regular, shot a third-round 66 to tie Zhang for the54-hole lead on 14-under before shooting his third 68 to finish 18-under, three clear of Liao Guiming.

Tsai and Zhang at luxehills_creditworldsportgroup

“It never ceases to amaze me how good these guys are. The course has some teeth, it’s not easy. However, there is room to drive the ball and thegreens are large,” Hollinger said. “Pros hit it so long and straight, they can avoid problems. Even though there are bunkers, lots of them, it’s a course you can attack.”

C.B. Fong, the club’s General Manager, said the large galleries also played their part in inspiring low scores and expected thesame at June’s event, when Zhang Lianwei will be among many top players competing at Luxehills for the first time.

“Luxehills had the biggest crowds on the Omega China Tour and this makes a difference for theplayers,” Fong said. “It gives them added incentive to play well and they’re encouraged when they have the crowd cheering their birdies. The golfers respond to the fans.”

www.omegachinatour.com

For high-res photos

Visit the Gallery at www.omegachinatour.com and click on any image to access the high-resolution option. Credit: World Sport Group.

For further information

Please contact John Higginson, Media Manager, World Sport Group (East Asia). Email: j.higginson@worldsportgroup.com.hk. Tel: +852 2891-2000. Mobile: +852 6626-1443.

About the Luxehills International Country Club

Luxehills International Country Club is Chengdu’s most central golf club and part of the Luxehills International Community, the most prominent real estate project in China’s southwest region. The project was developed by Wide Horizon Real Estate Co. Ltd. The golf club is renowned for its beautiful landscape and spectacular scenery and includes a North American-style clubhouse, an 18-hole championship course by JMP Golf Design Group and international-standard facilities. Firmly established in China’s golfing community, Luxehills was voted Favourite Course of the Year by the players on the 2008 Omega China Tour and hosted the 2008 National Golf Clubs General Managers Conference.