Alexander Levy will face a host of European Tour winners when he heads to Shanghai to defend his Volvo China Open title in a fortnight.
Levy, who is attempting to become the first player in the event’s history to retain the trophy, is joined in the field by a number of champions from The 2015 Race to Dubai, including Gary Stal, Andrew Dodt, Trevor Fisher Junior and Richie Ramsay, who became the most recent winner in 2015 with victory in the Trophée Hassan II in Morocco.
The field also boasts real strength in depth with no fewer than 13 of the world’s top 100 competing, including Volvo World Match Play champion Mikko Ilonen, Francesco Molinari and Marcel Siem, as well as many other big names such as 2011 Volvo China Open champion and former Ryder Cup star, Nicolas Colsaerts, five-time European Tour winner David Howell, and another winner of this title, Simon Dyson.
Other former holders of the Volvo China Open taking part include Stephen Dodd (2005), Jeev Milkha Singh (2006), Markus Brier (2007), Damien McGrane (2008), and Scott Strange (2009).
Levy said: “My maiden victory at the 2014 Volvo China Open was an amazing experience. It is definitely one of the best moments of my career so far and I am very excited to be returning to Shanghai as defending champion. It will be the first time I have defended a title so I am looking forward to it very much.”
Chinese players competing include the winner of the Volvo China Junior Match Play Championship, Jin Cheng, and the host nation’s highest ranked player in the world, Li Hao-tong, also a former winner of the Volvo China Junior Match Play. There will be more than 30 Chinese golfers in the field, including the 12 golfers who have won their places via one of the four qualifying tournaments hosted by Volvo in the last two months, which reflects the status and prestige of China’s national open championship.
Per Ericsson, President Volvo Event Management, said: “Each year this prestigious championship seems to offer something new and refreshing as we visit different courses all over this great nation. We have several reigning champions in the field this week, and it will be fascinating to see whether Alexander Levy can break the mould by retaining his title. Volvo is extremely proud to be involved in golf at all levels here in China, and we are looking forward to an exciting week at the beautiful Tomson Shanghai Pudong Club.”
The Volvo China Open takes place from April 23rd-26th at the Tomson Shanghai Pudong Golf Club in Shanghai, China. Volvo was the first western brand to engage with golf in China in 1995, and this will be Volvo’s 84th tournament on the European Tour. The prize fund is RMB 20 million.
