Grégory Bourdy will attempt to rewrite over 40 years of golfing history this week when he defends his UBS Hong Kong Open title at the Hong Kong Golf Club in Fanling.
Although only a part of The European Tour International Schedule since the 2002 season, the tournament – the longest running sporting event in Hong Kong – has a rich history stretching back over five decades, but the last player to make a successful defense was Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Yung-yo in 1964.
Bourdy has a chance to equal the feat thanks to a sterling performance 12 months ago when a final round 67 held off the charging Rory McIlroy to give him his third European Tour triumph. Indeed, should he win again, he will equal the current record of most consecutive winning years on The European Tour with four, dating back to the 2007 season.
“It’s a nice memory for me to have and it was one of my best victories on Tour so I am very much looking forward to going back to Hong Kong,” said the 28 year old Frenchman. “I like the course and Hong Kong itself so I’m feeling good about going back and hopefully I can repeat what I did last year.
“The course itself isn’t that long but it is tight and tree lined and you have to be able to move the ball right and left. You also have to be careful on the greens where you have to read the lines carefully on the grain. But I’ve always had a good feeling in Hong Kong, I love the city - it is an exciting place to be and because of that it’s one of the best weeks on Tour.”
Not only did last year see Bourdy claim his third Tour title, it also was the victory which clinched his place in the inaugural Dubai World Championship and the Frenchman, currently 58th in the Race to Dubai, will be looking to cement a return trip to Jumeriah Golf Estates next week with a solid showing in Hong Kong.
A high quality field has assembled at the historic Fanling venue all hoping to halt Bourdy’s quest for a second success and claim the lion’s share of the US$2,500,000 prize fund.
Headlining the challenge is reigning US Open Champion Graeme McDowell who will be looking to take advantage of Martin Kaymer’s absence to cut further into the German’s lead at the top of The Race to Dubai.
McDowell’s share of third place in last week’s Barclays Singapore Open, while Kaymer finished tied tenth, helped the Ulsterman shave the German’s lead down to €367,600 and he will be looking to make further inroads at the Hong Kong Golf Club.
Also returning to action in Fanling are McDowell’s Ryder Cup team-mates Ian Poulter – who finished tied fifth last year – and Rory McIlroy who will be looking to eventually get his hands on the trophy having gone agonisingly close to victory in the past two stagings of the event – pipped by Bourdy last year and beaten in a play-off by Lin Wen-tang the year before.
Elsewhere, former US PGA Championship winner Y E Yang of Korea will spearhead the Asian challenge in this the sixth and final co-sanctioned event with the Asian Tour in 2010 while the international flavour of the event is summed up by the two other Major Champions in action, John Daly of the United States and Paul Lawrie of Scotland.
Indeed, the tournament has a wonderfully eclectic history of former winners with the previous 51 editions having produced 42 different champions from 16 different countries, including nine Major Champions who have won 25 Major Championships between them.
UBS will be title sponsor for the sixth occasion, during which time it has overseen a substantial rise in the tournament’s prize money. Indeed, the total prize fund has increased every year from US$1.2 million in the 2006 season to the US$2.5 million figure which will be on offer this week.
