World Number Seven Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland will be the star attraction when the European Challenge Tour stages its first official event in Cairo with the Egyptian Open at the JW Marriott Mirage City Golf Club from October 20-23, 2010.
The 21 year old superstar, who finished in a tie for third place at The Open Championship last week, will join the cream of the Challenge Tour’s young talent at the penultimate event of the 2010 season.
For McIlroy it will mean a brief break from European Tour duty, just weeks after his expected debut in The Ryder Cup and a month prior to the season-ending Dubai World Championship.
Although this will be McIlroy’s first competitive appearance in Egypt, the man from Hollywood, Northern Ireland, is no stranger to the Middle East, having captured his first European Tour title at the 2009 Dubai Desert Classic before finishing the year as runner-up behind champion Lee Westwood of England at the inaugural Dubai World Championship.
“I’m very excited about the chance of playing in Egypt for the first time,” said McIlroy. “It’s not a country you would think about as a home for golf, but I have heard about the courses there, the history of the Egyptian Open and the developments that are coming online. So I can’t wait to see it all for myself.”
McIlroy made a sound start to his 2010 campaign by finishing third at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, whilst at the Dubai Desert Classic he finished in a tie for fifth place 12 months after clinching his maiden European Tour title in the Emirate.
Despite a niggling back problem and some time off the course, he bounced back in sensational style by recording his maiden US PGA Tour victory with a closing course record round of 62 at the Quail Hollow Championship – and with it became the first player since Tiger Woods to win a US PGA Tour event prior to his 21st birthday.
“To have one of the world’s best players agree to join us for the 2010 tournament is a wonderful bonus after achieving full European Challenge Tour status,” said Egyptian Golf Federation Chairman Ayman Hussein.
“Having Rory McIlroy with us will help focus attention on Egypt, a country we firmly believe has a bright golfing future to match its reputation as the original home of the game in the Middle East. I am sure he will be guaranteed a warm welcome, not only from Egyptian golf fans, but also from the players on the European Challenge Tour.
In Cairo, McIlroy will join around 80 players from the European Challenge Tour as well as a selection of local and regional invites and qualifiers.
In 2009, the event – whilst not part of the official European Challenge Tour Schedule at the time – attracted an impressive field, complemented by a guest appearance from European Ryder Cup Captain Colin Montgomerie of Scotland.
“Last year’s event was very impressive and we expect the 2010 Egyptian Open to take the tournament to even greater heights, both in terms of infrastructure and quality of play,” said Nick Tarratt, Director of The European Tour International, Dubai Office.
“Its position as an end-of-season event means it will command a strong field, while the appearance of one of the world’s most exciting players in Rory McIlroy underlines the massive steps taken by the Egyptian Golf Federation in putting golf in Egypt on the world map.”
