There will be a united front in Russia as players from The European Tour and the European Challenge Tour join forces to do battle for the BMW Russian Open, the second of three dual ranking events in 2003.
With the season’s fourth Major – the US PGA Championship – being played at Oak Hill Country Club in New York, the BMW Russian Open gives players like Scotsman Andrew Coltart the opportunity to enhance his 32nd place on the Volvo Order of Merit, with 42 of his fellow Members in action in America.
For the Challenge Tour players in action, the tournament gives them the ideal opportunity to test themselves against more experienced opponents over the demanding 7,066 yard, par 72 course at the Meridien Moscow Golf and Country Club.
Twelve of the 14 Challenge Tour champions from this season will line up in Russia knowing that the first prize of €66,660 from a total fund of €400,000 can put them in a strong position for claiming one of the 15 cards available at the end of the season for the 2004 European Tour International Schedule 2004.
Thomas Besancenez, Johan Edfors, Jamie Elson, Martin Erlandsson, Sebastien Fernandez, Marcus Fraser, David Geall, Ivo Giner, James Hepworth, Greig Hutcheon, Michael Jonzon, Martin LeMesurier and Daniel Vancsik can all go a long way to securing their graduation to the Tour with a victory.
They will also relish the opportunity to test themselves against the likes of Coltart – one of the top players in Europe for almost a decade. The Scot has had another consistent year, accumulating five top ten finishes and over €410,000 so far in 2003.
It will also be intriguing to watch the progress of those players who progressed from the Challenge Tour Rankings last year.
The Number One in 2002, Englishman Lee S James, will be joined by fellow graduates Frenchmen Jean-François Lucquin and Julien Van Hauwe, as well as Nicolas Vanhootegem from Belgium and will no doubt meet up with some familiar faces from their successful travels last season.
This will be the eighth year the tournament has been staged at the Robert Trent Jones Jnr designed layout situated at Nakhabino in the Krasnogorsky District – some 40 km north west of Moscow.
