Pat Perez, Thomas Bjørn and defending champion Jordan Smith have all confirmed to play the Porsche European Open on what is a landmark year for the German event.
First established in 1978, the Porsche European Open has gone on to become one of the European Tour’s most renowned tournaments as it celebrates its 40thanniversary.
Back in 1978 Bobby Wadkins became the first player to lift the European Open, and back then he certainly had no idea what a historic tournament he had just won.
He was the first in an illustrious series of winners, from Sandy Lyle, Greg Norman, Ian Woosnam, Sir Nick Faldo, Lee Westwood, Darren Clarke, Colin Montgomerie to double champion Bernhard Langer. They all fought hard for every shot and were proud to leave the course as victors.
The European Open made its way onto the European Tour schedule for the first time exactly 40 years ago and has been attracting the stars of the international golfing world ever since. In this special anniversary year, the Porsche European Open will take place at Green Eagle Golf Courses near Hamburg from 25 to 29 July.
Since it made its debut, the European Open has become one of the highlights on the European Tour calendar. Needless to say, the world’s top players are keen not to miss out on the chance to compete on the Green Eagle course.
England’s Jordan Smith is aiming to defend his title this year.
“I will come and defend my Porsche European Open title this July,” he said. “Your first win on the European Tour is always special and I know there will be a lot of world class players in the field trying to win in 2018.”
Smith enjoyed an outstanding maiden season overall and was one of the most successful rookies on last year’s European tour, finishing 24th in the Race to Dubai.
US star Pat Perez will be making his second appearance in northern Germany.
He won the CIMB Classic on the PGA Tour in October 2017 and has also produced some impressive performances in the early tournaments in 2018.
He is currently ranked 19th in the world and is in seventh place in the FedExCup standings. He has fond memories of his first trip to Germany last year for the Porsche European Open and is aiming to do everything he can to win this tournament: “I can't wait to get back there and make a run for the trophy - it would be great to see an American flag next to the winners name again in the anniversary year of this great event.”
