Aside from being the fourth and final World Golf Championship of the season, the WGC – HSBC Champions will also play a critical role in determining the outcome of the inaugural Race to Dubai on The 2009 European Tour International Schedule.
The Race to Dubai is a thrilling golfing odyssey which will take 50 European Tour events to 27 different destinations around the globe – a 382 day campaign involving players from 40 nations.
Within that journey, however, the HSBC Champions holds the unusual position of featuring twice and, with US$12 million in total in prize money on offer, its importance to The Race to Dubai as a whole is obvious.
Back in November, the Race began at the HSBC Champions when Sweden’s Robert Karlsson – the winner of The Harry Vardon Trophy as European Number One in 2008 – struck the opening drive amid a noisy staccato burst of cameras on the first tee of the Sheshan International Golf Club.
Karlsson went on to record a birdie three on that hole, the first of thousands recorded by players around the world over the next 12 months. Indeed 18, and one eagle three, were notched by Spain’s Sergio Garcia alone as he beat England’s Oliver Wilson that week to clinch the HSBC Champions title.
Now the golfing eyes of the world will focus once more on the outstanding Shanghai venue from November 5-8 as it makes its debut in the World Golf Championship arena.
“There is no question that the WGC-HSBC Champions is critical in the overall picture of The Race to Dubai,” said George O’Grady, Chief Executive of The European Tour.
“The Race to Dubai is getting ever closer to the finishing line and, with the prize money on offer in China, we can expect to see a number of important movements not only in terms of those hopeful of finishing Number One, but also those who harbour hopes of qualifying and playing in the final event – the Dubai World Championship.
“I think the importance of the tournament – and the stature it holds in the game – was outlined by the fact the decision was taken to finish the last HSBC Champions on the Monday to ensure – as all great championships are – that it was contested over 72 holes. Therefore, its elevation to WGC level was truly merited.”
The WGC - HSBC Champions is the fourth and final World Golf Championship of the season and the only one played outside the United States of America.
The other three were; the WGC – Accenture Match Play in Arizona in February, won by Geoff Ogilvy; the WGC – CA Championship in Florida in March, won by Phil Mickelson; and the WGC – Bridgestone Invitational in Ohio in August, won by Tiger Woods.
