The European Tour are pleased to announce a new tournament in Galway in August which will be the first staged under a new structure incorporating both the European Tour and Challenge Tour.
The West of Ireland Golf Classic will be played at Galway Bay Golf and Country Club from August 12 to 15 as a ‘double badge’’ tournament with an equal number of golfers From each of the two Tours eligible to enter.
The exciting new tournament will have a prize fund of 350,000 euro and counts towards the Volvo Order of Merit on the European Tour as well as the Challenge Tour Order of Merit.
In addition, the winner will gain a one year exemption on the European Tour while points for qualification for the 1999 Ryder Cup match in the United States will also be at stake, lending added status to the tournament so close to the qualifying deadline the following week.
The announcement of the West of Ireland Golf Classic is further evidence of Ireland’’s position as a pre-eminent destination on the three European Tours.
Already, the country hosts the Murphy’’s Irish Open at Druids Glen and the Smurfit European Open at the K Club, venue for the 2005 Ryder Cup. The European Seniors Tour schedule for 1999 includes the AIB Irish Seniors Open at Mount Juliet and the flagship event on that Tour, the Senior British Open at Royal Portrush.
Ken Schofield, Executive Director of the European Tour, praised Bord Failte for their initiative in the new Galway tournament and said: "On behalf of the European Tour I would like to express my gratitude to Bord Failte for their valued support and to Galway Bay Golf and Country Club for helping to drive this initiative forward.
"We are delighted to be returning to Galway where our stars of tomorrow on the European Challenge Tour have an opportunity to join forces with the Members of the European Tour in this superb new tournament, the West of Ireland Classic at Galway Golf and Country Club.
"This new format, carrying both badges, can only be beneficial to the Challenge Tour players while the main Tour players have the additional bonus of chasing valuable Ryder Cup points."
Alain de Soultrait, Director of the European Challenge Tour, said: "This new tournament will be a great addition to the Challenge Tour. We have travelled throughout Europe since the Challenge Tour was created 11 years ago and now have the chance to visit Ireland for the very first time.
"This new event will also offer Irish players the opportunity to join the Challenge Tour which has become a proven training ground for young professionals and has produced champions of the quality of Costantino Rocca, Thomas Björn and Ignacio Garrido.
"It will provide Challenge Tour players with a superb opportunity to prove their skills at a higher level, giving them the chance to follow in the footsteps of players such as Mats Lanner and Thomas Levet, both Challenge Tour players who became champions on the main Tour in 1998 and earned exemption to play at the highest level.
"The first West of Ireland Championship will be an historic moment in the development of the Challenge Tour and this type of tournament can only benefit the Challenge Tour."
Dr James McDaid TD, Ireland’’s Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation, said: "I’’m delighted to welcome this new European Tour event to the West of Ireland. Ireland can be resolutely proud of its tremendous golfing resources. As a result of huge investment in the development of our golf product, particularly over the last decade, the number of overseas visitors coming to Ireland to play golf has now grown to over 230,000 visitors and we can predict further considerable increases as we move into the new century and new millennium. Indeed, to underline our growing status in the golfing world, Ireland was awarded the Hertz International ‘best golf destination’’ for 1999.
"One of the major reasons for growth in golf is the coverage on TV of five major golf tournaments which are held in Ireland, the Murphy’’s Irish Open, the Smurfit European Open, and AIB Seniors Open. These tournaments are seen by a world-wide audience of over 300 million. To compliment this extensive coverage Bord Fáilte has produced vignettes of a number of Irish golf courses as an introduction to this television coverage,
"This tournament will provide further opportunities for Ireland to highlight its golfing attractions. This initiative will put Galway Bay Golf and Country Club firmly on the map and will make a significant contribution to the economic prosperity of this region.
"Our involvement with this tournament is part of the Government’’s and my own Department’’s policy to support tourism on a regional basis. Through Bord Fáilte we are working extremely hard to ensure a strong spread of the benefits of tourism throughout all the regions of the country.
"In welcoming the new event to the West of Ireland and the Irish golfing international calendar, I wish it every success."
Galway last played host to a European Tour event in 1984, when Gordon Brand Jnr won the Quincentennial Classic at Galway Golf Club from a field which included Sandy Lyle, Ian Woosnam and Ian Baker-Finch.
However this year’’s event will be played at Galway Bay Golf and Country Club, a classic lay-out designed by Ryder Cup player Christy O’’Connor Jnr and opened in 1991. Darren Clarke, second in last year’’s Volvo Order of Merit, won the Irish Closed Championship there in 1994.
O’’Connor Jnr said: "I’’m thrilled by the news that Galway Bay Golf and Country Club will stage this tremendous new tournament. It has been a long-cherished dream to bring a major international event to Galway Bay and to have it in Ryder Cup year is a real bonus.
"Many of the world’’s top professionals, like Darren and Ernie Els, have played the course and fallen in love with it. I can already feel the excitement building up among the local population at such a high quality event coming to the community.
"The Ryder Cup qualification adds to the excitement while we are delighted to welcome the Challenge Tour players. They are the stars of the future and can only benefit from playing at the highest level."
The field of 156 will be split 50-50 between the European Tour and the Challenge Tour with a number of places reserved for players from the Irish Order of Merit and a selected number of invitations.
The winner of the first prize of 58,324 euro will also receive an exemption on the European Tour for the remainder of 1999 and the entire 2000 season.
