John Daly of the United States and South Africa’’s Ernie Els will join defending champion Jarmo Sandelin of Sweden in competing for the BMW Asian Open, which represents the first counting tournament towards the 2003 Volvo Order of Merit.
The trio will be at Ta Shee Golf and Country Club, Taiwan, from November 21-24 for the second edition of the US$1,500,000 event which Sandelin won last November to end more than two years without a victory on The European Tour International Schedule.
Last year’’s inaugural tournament was a huge success with large galleries lining the fairways to witness a thrilling conclusion to the event, with Sandelin edging out José Maria Olazábal of Spain and Thailand’’s Thongchai Jaidee by one stroke.
Ingo Wirth, Tournament Director of the BMW Asian Open and the BMW International Open in Germany, said: “BMW is thrilled to have confirmation from such a talented roster of big name golfers. This is an excellent event which enjoyed tremendous success during its debut last year at the beautiful Ta Shee Golf and Country Club. I am certain golf fans throughout Asia are in for some spectacular golfing action during our four day tournament.”
Daly, winner of the 2001 BMW International Open, will be seeking a ‘BMW double’’ in the Taiwanese tournament, which is again joint sanctioned by The European Tour and the Davidoff Tour.
Ramlan Harun, Executive Director of the Asian PGA, said: “Last season we were treated to a wonderful week of golf in Taiwan for the inaugural BMW Asian Open and it is with eager anticipation that we await the start of this year’’s tournament. We must thank BMW for creating a world class tournament in Asia which attracts star players and boasts the richest purse in our region.”
