Long-term golf sponsor HSBC crafted a mid-air spectacular to launch this year’s WGC-HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, as World Number One Dustin Johnson, Swedish Major winner and last year’s runner up Henrik Stenson, and local hero Li Haotong made sure that “Asia’s Major” got off to a flying start.
The three players were suspended in mid-air far above the iconic Shanghai skyline and the watching gaze of defending champion and World Number Four Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, who was keeping his feet firmly on the ground.
The action unfolded on the roof of The Peninsula Hotel on Shanghai’s famous riverfront Bund and was directed by Beijing-born contemporary artist Li Wei who specialises in gravity-defying imagery with the use of metal wires and scaffolding.
Following the daredevil launch, the “superhero” theme this tournament has become known for will play out once again as fifteen of the world’s top 20 players gather in China for the event at Sheshan International Golf Club on October 26-29.
The four players who took part in today’s gravity-defying stunt have all adopted superhero personas - Dustin “The Heat” Johnson, Hideki “The Mountain” Matsuyama, Henrik “The Machine” Stenson and Haotong “The Force” Li.
Henrik Stenson said: “I always like to get amongst the birdies and eagles but never quite like this before. WGC-HSBC Champions is a tournament that I look forward to every year. After finishing tied second here last year, I am hoping to go one better this year and add this fantastic trophy to the collection and end the year on a high. I can’t wait to get started.”
CGA-HSBC China Junior Golf Program graduate and local favourite Li Haotong said: “WGC-HSBC Champions was the tournament that really helped propel me onto the world stage in 2015. I learned a lot that week, playing alongside Jordan Spieth over the weekend and being in the mix coming down the stretch. As a result, it is a tournament I really look forward to playing and I hope I can give the fans something to cheer about on Sunday afternoon.”
Dustin Johnson said: “I’ve heard it said I am on the rise, but this is pretty extreme! I have great memories of winning here in 2013 and as always in Shanghai, it’s going to be very competitive, but also a lot of fun.”
Hideki Matsuyama said: “This tournament was the catalyst for the best twelve months of my career so far and to defend my title would really cap it all off, but the WGC-HSBC Champions field just seems to get better and better so I know I’ve got a battle on my hands.”
An HSBC spokesperson said: “Golf has entered a new era of opportunity where the game is embracing innovation in technology and format and where anything is possible. We hope that with this kind of promotion where golf is encouraged to go beyond the norm, we will do our part to help open the game up to new audiences. As demonstrated at our launch event today, there is a new type of golf, a more exciting golf – golf without limits.
“This year we have assembled 33 of the top 50 golfers in the world, and 15 of the top 20 and it is this strength of field that inspired our superhero theme which is designed to celebrate the incredible talent of players descending on Shanghai to do battle at Sheshan International Golf Club. We’ve come a long way since we first brought HSBC Champions to China in 2005 but on the back of a successful Olympic return and a wave of innovation and technology in the sport, there are even bigger opportunities ahead of us.”
