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World number one Rory McIlroy will headline this year’s Barclays Singapore Open along with three-time winner Adam Scott and American star Phil Mickelson, organisers said yesterday.
McIlroy, who won his second major title at the PGA Championship last month, adds significant celebrity power to the US$6mn event which is yet to announce next year’s title sponsor.
The Northern Irishman, as well as four-time major champion Mickelson, will also play a prominent role in the famous Ryder Cup team tournament taking place in Chicago later this month.
The November 8-11 Singapore Open, touted as “Asia’s major”, started in 1961 but is competing in an increasingly crowded market. In May, British bank Barclays decided not to extend its current contract, which expires this year.
Last month, Asian Tour chief executive Mike Kerr told AFP he was in talks to bring an “iconic” tournament at a “similar level” to the majors to Asia within three to five years, but did not reveal in which country.
McIlroy underlined his top ranking on Sunday when held off an elite field to claim his second consecutive win on the US PGA Tour play-off series, putting him in pole position for the series champion’s $10mn bonus.
The 23-year-old will play in Singapore as part of an Asian swing that will also take him to the BMW Masters in Shanghai and a one-day matchplay face-off against Tiger Woods elsewhere in China.
Australia’s Scott, the world number five, can burnish his season after a heart-breaking outing at the British Open, where he threw away a four-shot lead with four holes to play to hand victory to Ernie Els.
He will feel at home in Singapore after winning a record three titles in 2005, 2006 and 2010, and finishing third in 2007 and equal third in 2009.
Left-hander Mickelson is seeking his first win at Sentosa Golf Club after competing in the last five Singapore Opens. His best finish was in 2008, when he placed ninth.
A field of 156 will compete for the $1mn winner’s cheque at an event which is also known for its weather delays.
Last year, Spain’s Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano beat Filipino Juvic Pagunsan in a play-off which had to be completed early on the Monday morning after a series of tropical storms.
Donald and Mickelson to play HSBC Champions
World number three Luke Donald and four-time major winner Phil Mickelson will star in this year’s $7mn WGC-HSBC Champions golf tournament in Guangdong, China, organisers said yesterday.
They will be joined by defending champion Martin Kaymer of Germany and England’s Lee Westwood, ranked number four in the world, at the event at Mission Hills’ Olazabal Course from November 1 to 4, the organisers added.
Kaymer, winner of last year’s event by three strokes, said: “I haven’t had as good a year as I would have liked and I really want to finish my season on a high note so winning my second World Golf Championships would be a great way to turn my season around.”
The tournament, one of Asia’s richest, is being held on a new course this year with the previous seven titles being held at Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai.
“It is a little bit of a disadvantage to be defending my title on a different course but I really liked the Olazabal Course when I played the World Cup there in 2009 so I am looking forward to returning and seeing if I can mount a successful defence of this prestigious title,” added Kaymer.