The winner of the 21st edition of the Volvo China Open will have the honour of lifting a new trophy, which is made of finest Swedish crystal and was unveiled on the eve of the tournament.
Defending champion Alex Levy was joined at the unveiling ceremony by the trophy’s designers Eva Hanner Larson and Erika Lagerbielke, who collaborated on the design.
The trophy has only been partially finished, as the newly-crowned champion will put his ball on the base and place the crystal vase on top, with both parts then being sealed together to complete the process.
Lagerbielke, designer and professor at Linnaeus University, said: “We thought about how to make the design unique and came up with the idea of having the champion complete the trophy with his winning ball, so perfectly capturing the moment in time forever.”
Hanner Larson, programme chief designer for Volvo Cars, added: “We wanted the trophy to tell a story, and this was the best way of doing it. It was a very enjoyable process, and we both learned a lot. We hope the winner will enjoy lifting the trophy as much as we enjoyed designing it.”
Levy, who is bidding to become the first player in history to win the tournament on more than one occasion, was very complimentary about the new trophy.
He said: “It’s very nice, and I hope I can get my hands on it on Sunday night.
“But I’m not thinking about winning at the moment, my first aim is just to play well and to enjoy this week. I really like the course, I’ve never been here before but my first impressions are very good. It’s tough and the greens are very firm, which we don’t get very often on The European Tour. So it will be very interesting and I’m looking forward to the experience.
“Last week I struck the ball very well, but struggled a little with my short game. So if I can hit the ball as well as I did last week and hole a few more putts, I should hopefully be in for a good week.”
