Three-time Major Champion Ernie Els has confirmed his entry for the 2010 WGC-HSBC Champions at the Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai from November 4 – 7.
Els was runner-up in last year’s edition of the tournament, shooting a course-record equalling nine under par 63 in the final round. The South African has won two WGC titles in his career - the 2010 WGC-CA Championship and the 2004 American Express Championship - and is aiming for a third in China.
Adding to the excitement is the fact Tiger Woods will lose his World Number One spot at the beginning of the tournament week, and Els said: “It’s been five years since there was a week like this and nothing like it in the history of golf in Asia. It’s big for the world of golf and great for the Asian golf fans and the tournament.
“I’m getting on that plane to China with the aim of finishing one place higher than last year. If I finish the year with a second WGC title (of 2010), four wins in total and jumped back into the world’s top ten, I’ll be more than happy.”
Els’s will face stiff competition however, as the HSBC Champions field will be the strongest in its history.
“It’s a who’s who of world golf, with the top four players fighting to be World Number One and the American and European Ryder Cup stars up against each other for the first time since Celtic Manor,” said HSBC Group Head of Sponsorship, Giles Morgan.
“Ernie Els brings even more class to what was already a world-class field. Ernie showed, with that fantastic final round last year, that he was ready to win against top-quality opposition. He proved it with three great wins this season and it would be a great exclamation mark to his year if he came back to Shanghai and put some more Wedgewood on his mantelpiece.”
Robbie Henchman, Senior Vice President of the tournament promoters IMG, added: “Entries have now closed and the field is fantastic with 35 of the world’s top 50 players confirmed. It is fantastic to have Ernie in the field fresh from his win at the Grand Slam of Golf. He showed how well the course suited him with his near-flawless final round 63 last year and I am sure we will see him there or thereabouts on the leaderboard at this year’s WGC-HSBC Champions.”
