Major
winners Clarke, Cabrera, Campbell and Beem
to
tee-off in an innovative
franchisee-based
Golf Premier League
·
Teams to play for $ 400,000 in
prize money
·
Major champions, global stars
to compete with top Asians and Indians in a new team concept
·
Event to be held at world-class
Aamby Valley Golf course
New Delhi, January
4: Four Major
champions and a host of top European, Asian and Indian stars will come together
for the inaugural edition of the Golf Premier League (GPL), a pioneering and
exciting city-based concept in golf.
The
four champions, who between them have won five Majors, besides a host of European
and Asian Tour titles, will tee off alongside Gen Next stars of Asia and the
PGTI in an unique concept bringing together players from various international
Tours across the world.
The
event to be played on a stroke-play-cum-best-ball format over three days will
be telecast live.
The
Golf Premier League officially launched on Thursday (January 4) is a brainchild
of India’s leading pro golfer Shiv Kapur,
a regular on European and Asian Tours, and Neeraj
Sareen, a former top-flight amateur golfer.
The
event will be held under the banner of Sportsmantra with players having been
released by the Asian and the PGTI Tours.
WHO ARE THE STARS?
THE INTERNATIONAL
LEGENDS:
The
Major champions, who have confirmed for the event are Angel Cabrera (US Open in 2007 and Masters in 2009), Darren Clarke (2011 British Open
winner), Michael Campbell (US Open
in 2005) and Rich Beem (PGA
Championships in 2002).
Also
confirming their participation are Johan
Edfors, a multiple winner on European Tour, and David Howell, the winner of the inaugural WGC-HSBC Champions, when
he beat Tiger Woods. Some more names will be released soon.
THE INTERNATIONAL
INDIANS:
The
International Indians will comprise
of players playing on various international Tours. They include the likes of
four-time Asian tour winner, Gaganjeet
Bhullar, former Volvo Masters of Asia champion, Shiv Kapur. Also in the list
of Indian Internationals, is Daniel
Chopra, of Swedish-Indian parentage. A two-time PGA Tour winner, Chopra
played golf in India in his formative years. The field also includes Anirban Lahiri and Himmat Rai, also an Asian Tour winner in 2011. The International
Indians line-up also includes Chiragh
Kumar, the 2011 Order of Merit winner on Indian PGTI Tour.
ASIAN SUPERSTARS:
Thaworn
Wiratchant,
the 2012 winner of the Asian Tour Order of Merit and holder of the record for
most Asian Tour titles, and Chapchai
Nirat, who holds the world record for the lowest four-round total of
32-under recorded in India a few years ago, will lead the starcast from the
Asian Tour. The top eight available stars from the Order of Merit, as at the
end of the 2012 season, will be eligible. Also confirming their participation
are Australian Scott Hend, winner of
the ‘Long Drive’ statistic on PGA Tour in 2005, and two-time Asian Tour winner,
Jason Knutzon.
INDIAN STARS:
The
top PGTI professionals, who have been confirmed include Shamim Khan and Rashid Khan,
the No. 1 and 2, from the PGTI Order of Merit for 2012, besides three-time
Asian Tour winner, the seasoned Gaurav
Ghei. Former PGTI Tour Order of Merit winner, Ashok Kumar, and multiple winner on PGTI Tour, Sri Lanka’s Mithun Perera, have also confirmed
their participation.
Interestingly,
the field includes the last three PGTI Order of Merit winners – Ashok Kumar (2010), Chiragh Kumar (2011) and
Shamim Khan (2012).
WHERE WILL IT BE HELD?
·
The
event will be held at the world-class Aamby
Valley Golf Course in Aamby Valley City in Maharashtra with a purse of $4,00,000 USD from the 7th -10th of
February 2013. The Aamby Valley Golf Course,
which nestles in the Sahyadri Hills is easily reachable from Mumbai by
road. It is 25 km south-west of Lonavala, near Pune. A designer course, it has
played host to various international and Indian pro events, besides corporate
events.
·
Part
of the Aamby Valley City, it has state-of-the-art Golf Academy and
other sporting facilities.
·
The
Course
is just under 7,100 under from black tees and plays to par of 72
WHAT DO THEY PLAY FOR?
·
The
winning team will walk away with a quarter of a million USD (about Rs. 1.35 crores)
·
There
will also be $ 25,000 available in a Charity
Skills Challenge
HOW DOES IT WORK?
·
The
event, which will become an annual affair, will feature eight franchises with teams
of four golfers each.
·
Each
team will comprise four players, one each drawn from a pool of Internationals, Indian Internationals (Indians playing on various Internationals
Tours), Asian Tour (top eight available
players from 2012 Order of Merit) and PGTI
Tour (top eight available players from the 2012 Order of Merit).
·
There
will be an auction for the Internationals
and the Indian Internationals later
this month.
·
There
will be a cap on how high the bids can go.
·
Part
of the proceeds will go for a Charity
WHO OWNS THEM?
One
of the eight franchise owners/ principals is the former Sri Lankan captain, Mahela Jayawardene, a very keen golfer,
who will head the Colombo Sixers.
The principals for the franchisees, which have taken ownership of the teams
are:
- Delhi Darts (Mr. Madhav Dhar)
- Gujarat Underdawgs
- Colombo Sixers (Mr. Mahela Jayawardene)
- Shubhkamna Eagles (Mr. Piyush Tiwari)
- Tamilnadu Pulis (Mr. Dilip Thomas)
The
details of the remaining franchises will be announced soon.
WHY IT IS
UNIQUE?
·
The
GPL beginning February 7, 2013 will have three rounds with two day-night rounds
of stroke play and the final round being on the best-ball format. The team
scores will be calculated on cumulative scores of all four professionals over
three rounds each.
·
This
is the first time day-night competition has been adopted in professional golf
in Asia.
·
The
event will be telecast live for all three days.
·
The
main event to be held from February 8-10 will be preceded by Pro-Am competition
and a Skills Challenge, featuring Celebrities and professionals, on February 7.
·
Each
round will be played over 14 holes, taking a leaf from the T20 cricket.
WHAT DO THEY SAY?
“It
is the most unique concept in golf that I have seen in almost two decades as a
professional. Playing alongside some of the top names and top Asian and Indian
players will bring in a new excitement. I have been to India and I know the
game is growing fast. I am looking forward to the Golf Premier League,” said Michael Campbell, the 2005 US Open
winner.
“The
Golf Premier League (GPL) is the first of its kind golf property, which seeks
to create an innovative competition through a franchise-based model. This
format will allow for a unique partnership between golf players and team
owners. The presence of Golf Legends, European and Asian superstars, all of
whom have played and won at a very high level, will play alongside top Indian
talent. This will not only promote the game but also raise awareness about
golf, something that will bring added spectator interest,” said Shiv Kapur, Co-Founder, the Golf
Premier League.
Neeraj Sareen, the co-founder of the GPL,
added, “Through the GPL we are seeking to create value for franchise owners and
sponsors and at the same time we wish to bring world-class golfers in a
friendly and yet competitive atmosphere. This will also help sponsors realize
the value in golf, which has grown in great measure in India.”
Commenting
on the GPL, Padamjit Sandhu,
Director PGTI said, "This high profile international professional golf
championship in India will further enhance the already growing stature of the
sport in the region. We wish the promoters, the sponsors and the franchise
owners the very best and look forward to an exciting week of golf with
international marquee players at the GPL."
--
For further details please contact:
Abhoy
Chattopadhyay: abhoy@wordswork.in; +91-98113 25251
Deependra
Chetri: deependra@wordswork.in; +91-98111 82106
No comments:
Post a Comment