An international galaxy of stars from the worlds of sport and entertainment will line up alongside the cream of European Tour golfing talent in Wednesday’s Pro-Am competition, prior to the BMW PGA Championship.
The curtain-raising event prior to the flagship tournament on The European Tour International Schedule traditionally attracts a diverse and eclectic field to the West Course at Wentworth Club, but this year’s Pro-Am – featuring shotgun starts at 8.00am and 1.00pm – is set to be the best ever.
Football, as always, provides a healthy representation and Francesco Molinari of Italy will certainly be able to reminisce about his country’s footballing World Cup and European Championship triumphs in the company of former AC Milan striker Daniele Massaro and former Chelsea great Gianfranco Zola.
Completing that star-studded fourball will be Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko while former Scotland defender and now renowned television pundit Alan Hansen will have big hitting Spaniard Alvaro Quiros for company alongside former tennis star Tim Henman.
Rugby union is another sport well represented, led by England’s World Cup winning coach Sir Clive Woodward, who will partner defending champion Paul Casey, while two of the men who played for England under Woodward – Austin Healey and Will Greenwood – line up alongside Nick Dougherty, with radio personality DJ Spooney completing that particular fourball.
Completing the rugby quotient is former Welsh winger Ieuan Evans who partners his fellow countryman and West End singing sensation John Owen-Jones, alongside the former Open Champion Paul Lawrie.
Elsewhere Ron Dennis, the executive chairman of McLaren Automotive, plays with Rory McIlroy, while Jason Atherton will be hoping his golf is as tasty as the food he normally serves up in his role as Executive Chef in Gordon Ramsay’s Michelin starred Maze restaurant in London.
Atherton is part of one of the most intriguing fourballs of the day for, aside from their professional being none other than European Ryder Cup Captain Colin Montgomerie, the other two amateurs are television presenters Vernon Kay and Jeremy Kyle.
Finally, spare a thought for English professional David Howell who will have to work hard to keep a straight face and his mind on the job in the company of two of the country’s leading entertainment figures; television legend and Wentworth resident Bruce Forsyth and the man whose Radio Two breakfast show has recently broken all listening figure records, Chris Evans.
Completing that fourball is none other than BBC television’s sports reporter Chris Hollins who will be hoping to show he is as useful with a golf club in his hands as he was with Ola Jordan in his arms last year when he was the hugely popular winner of the BBC television show ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ a show which, of course, was compered by Bruce Forsyth.
Entry to the Pro-Am competition on Wednesday May 19 at Wentworth Club is free and, although the facility to pre-order tickets for the tournament itself from Thursday May 20 to Sunday May 23 is now closed, spectators are reminded that they can pay at the gate on each of the four days.
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