Chinese No 1 Liang Welcomes World’s Best to Volvo China Open
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Commenting on the 17th edition of the Volvo China Open, Per Ericsson, President of Volvo Event Management – Golf, the title sponsor, promoter and organiser, said, "Volvo is incredibly proud, not only to have had the vision to invest in golf in China when the game of golf was in its infancy, but also to have been entrusted by the China Golf Association, whose flagship tournament this is, to help grow the event into something that is now attracting the attention of top world golfers."
He added, "Whilst the record prize money and the new date two weeks after the Masters this year are important factors in positioning the Volvo China Open as one of world golf’s emerging 'Majors,’ equally important is the authenticity of there being qualifying events, thus enabling ambitious Chinese players to compete on the world stage. And so is taking the national open golf championship of China around the country, to the new venue of Luxehills in Chengdu this year, which helps spread the word about the game of golf nationwide."
Having opened its doors for play in 2007, Luxehills International Country Club has been steadily rising through the ranks, from initially hosting China Tour events, to title-sponsoring the season-opening Luxehills Chengdu Open on OneAsia last year, where Liang was victorious. This year, the venue steps up again to host the Volvo China Open, another significant Chinese event on the OneAsia circuit.
"We have taken our time building the reputation and the quality of the golf course," said CB Fong, General Manager at Luxehills, adding, "The opportunity to stage the Volvo China Open, China’s national open golf championship is a huge honour and a privilege and we look forward to welcoming the world of golf to Chengdu, to Luxehills for what promises to be a celebration of great golf."
He added, "Only a selected few of China’s 500-plus golf courses have enjoyed the honour of hosting the Volvo China Open and we are delighted to become a member of that elite group, and welcome the opportunity of challenging some of the world’s best golfers on our golf course and with great enthusiasm, we look forward to showcasing our traditional hospitality here in Chengdu in exactly 50-days-time."
Zhang Xiao-Ning, Director General of the Multi-Ball Games Administrative Center of the General Administration of Sports of China, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of the China Golf Association said, "Our national open golf championship, the Volvo China Open has benefited greatly from the long-term partnership that we forged with Volvo back in 1995 and we have seen the Volvo China Open develop progressively over time, to this point where we have a prize fund of RMB20million with the winner earning RMB3.3million (Approx. US$500,000)."
"With the respect the Volvo China Open has earned over the years as a truly open championship, we are delighted to see Chinese players having the opportunity, first to qualify and, once in the field, to test their golf game against the top golfers in the world," said Mr Zhang, adding, "Only through playing against the very best will our players progress, not only at home in China or even in Asia, but on the world stage."
He concluded, "With golf now part of the Olympic family from Rio de Janeiro in 2016, the game of golf in China is already undergoing a remarkable transformation in terms of participation levels and youth development, and the Volvo China Open plays a key role in encouraging aspiring young golfers, building media coverage as well as generating a culture of golf-watching, either on TV or on course here in China."
The 17th Volvo China Open, which is co-sanctioned by OneAsia and the European Tour, will be played over the JMP-designed, 7,335-yard, Par-72 Luxehills International Country Club in Chengdu, the 21-24 April, with a record prize fund of RMB20million (Approx. US$3million), with RMB3.3million (Approx. US$500,000) going to the 2011 Volvo China Open winner. The winner also qualifies automatically for the US$4.6million Volvo World Match Play Championship, to be held at Finca Cortesín, Spain from 19–22 May 2011.
The qualification criteria for the 2011 Volvo China Open take on a new and exciting dimension this year, one that is certain to ensure the greatest strength-in-depth in this history of China’s national open golf championship.
? 30 players from the Top 200 of the Official World Golf Ranking as at 31st March 2011
? Top 49 players from the European Tour Exemption Category List
? 49 players from OneAsia Exemption Category List
? 10 players nominated by the China Golf Association
? 13 players from the four Pre-qualifying events (three from each of the three domestic events and four from the International Pre-qualifying event)
? 4 Sponsors’ Invitations
? The 2010 Volvo China Junior Championship, Senior Boy’s winner
All events will be showcased on OneAsia's television platform with live coverage for four hours a day across all four tournament days, and broadcast to over 400 million homes in more than 40 countries.
Full coverage of OneAsia is available internationally on ESPN Star Sports, Jupiter Golf Network, SBS Golf Channel, Fox International, Network Ten, Sky Sports NZ, ESPN3 and America One in the USA, and ViaSat and Bloomberg Television among others in Europe.
