Eight former winners, led by defending champion YE Yang, and four Major winners, headed by Irish star Padraig Harrington, are the driving forces behind the 2011 Volvo China Open.
China’s number one Liang Wenchong, 2010 Ryder Cup-winning Captain Colin Montgomerie and Spanish star Sergio Garcia will also be hoping to bring their considerable talents to bear at the 17th edition of the event, which takes place at Luxehills International Country Club in Chengdu, China, from April 21-24.
With a record prize fund of RMB20million (approximately US$3million), of which RMB3.3million (approximately US$500,000) will go to the champion, not to mention a guaranteed place in the RMB32million (approximately US$5million) Volvo World Match Play Championship held in Spain in May, there is plenty to play for at the first Volvo China Open to be staged in the Sichuan Province.
On the back of an impressive top 20 finish at last week’s Masters Tournament, defending champion Yang said: “It is always important that a player defends any title he wins, out of respect for the tournament and its sponsors, so I am pleased to be returning to China, where I have already won twice. I know the Volvo China Open title has never been successfully defended, but there is a first time for everything.”
Chinese star Liang Wen-chong, who is making his seventh successive bid to become the first home player to win China’s the National Open since it joined The European Tour International Schedule in 2004, is looking forward to the event, especially as he is the only man in the 156-man field to have won over the 7,335 yards, par 72 Luxehills International Country Club course.
Liang said: “It is important that I have a competitive outing under my belt ahead of the Volvo China Open, my home open championship, which I have been especially excited about ever since Luxehills was announced as the host venue.”
It is just under one year ago that Liang won the last of his 17 career victories to date, the Chengdu Luxehills Open, beating Korean Kim Hyung-tae on the first hole of a dramatic sudden death play-off before heading to the Volvo China Open in Suzhou, where he finished in 17th place.
“It is always difficult coming off the back of a win, especially one as tense as my victory at Luxehills last year,” said the 32 year old. “I feel fresh, relaxed and on top of my game, but if I’m to win against a world-class field, I will have to play my very best.
“The support I will receive from my home crowd will hopefully inspire me to achieve what would be my most important victory so far, because every golfer, quite naturally, wants to win his National Open. Winning would be something very special, and the place in the Volvo World Match Play Championship is an added incentive to play my best golf.”
Montgomerie, fresh from his new role as a TV commentator at the Masters Tournament for Sky Sports, is preparing for his third successive appearance at the Volvo China Open, and is aiming to get his playing career back on track following his total immersion in the Captain’s role.
“The Volvo China Open has become a fixture on my schedule over recent years, and having won both the Hong Kong Open and the Macau Open, I would love to make it a hat-trick,” said the Scot, who has 40 wins worldwide.
“It’s a tough field, Sergio and Padraig bring great added value for the sponsors and organisers, whilst Liang Wen-chong, Zhang Lianwei and a host of other ambitious Chinese professionals should show us just how far Chinese golf has come over the 17 years of their National Open.
“I really enjoy being in China, where golf is definitely going places, and in the company of Volvo, which has been such a powerful force in golf for the past 23 years and counting,” added the man with nine Volvo tournament titles and seven straight Volvo Order of Merit crowns.
The Volvo China Open is being co-sanctioned by The European Tour and OneAsia.
