Six Ryder Cup stars among 50 European Tour winners for Avantha Masters

Greater NOIDA, March 8: Edoardo Molinari is one of six players with Ryder Cup pedigree competing in the fourth edition of the Avantha Masters next week. He is one of the 50 European Tour winners in the illustrious field, including former eight-times European Number One Colin Montgomerie and four winners of the Asian Tour Order of Merit: Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee, the Indian duo of Jyoti Randhawa and Jeev Milkha Singh, and China’s Liang Wenchong.  

The Italian will be joined at Jaypee Greens Golf Course by his Montgomerie  fellow former Ryder Cup stars Ignacio Garrido of Spain, England’s David Howell, Frenchman Thomas Levet and Welshman Philip Price.

Between them, the six have amassed a total of 31 points in the biennial contest, with Montgomerie contributing most to the European cause with 23.5 points won in eight appearances as a player. 

Molinari played under Montgomerie’s captaincy in Wales in 2010, winning one point out of a possible three as Europe survived a final day fight back to defeat the Americans 14½-13½.  

The two-time European Tour champion will be making his debut in the Avantha Masters, which will be tri-sanctioned by The European Tour, the Asian Tour and the Professional Golf Tour of India.

He said: “Part of the joy of playing golf for a living is travelling the world and experiencing new countries and different cultures, so I’m really looking forward to playing in the Avantha Masters for the first time next week.

“I have heard that golf is getting bigger in India all the time, so I’m excited about experiencing the atmosphere and hopefully I can give a good account of myself.”

Randhawa and Jeev will lead the home challenge in Greater Noida, with Challenge Tour champions Gaganjeet Bhullar and Shiv Kapur and two-time European Tour champion SSP Chowrasia also vying to take home the lion’s share of the €1.8million prize fund. 

Daniel Chopra will also be return to DGC where he learnt a lot of his golf and tee up in the Avantha Masters for the first time.

The two-time US PGA Tour champion, who was born in Sweden but raised in India, will be bidding to capture his third professional title on ‘home’ soil, having won the Indian Masters and the Indian PGA Championship in 1994.   

Held for the first time at the Greg Norman-designed Jaypee Greens GC, which at 7,347 yards is India’s longest golf course, the Avantha Masters will offer free entry to all spectators.

For further information, please contact:-

The European Tour Communications Department
Tel: +44 1344 840400
Email: Media@europeantour.com

Mrs. Shravani Dang

VP & Group Head - Corporate Communications, Avantha

Tel:  +91 9811261080

Email: s.dang@avanthagroup.com

Mr. Nikhil Kalaan

Assistant Manager - Media, PGTI

Tel: +91 99109 74846

Email: media@pgtofindia.com

About Avantha:

The US$4 billion Avantha Group is one of India’s leading business conglomerates. Its successful entities include BILT, Crompton Greaves, The Global Green Company, Avantha Power & Infrastructure, Biltech Building Elements, Salient Business Solutions, and Avantha Technologies. With an impressive global footprint, Avantha operates in more than 20 countries, employing 22,000 people worldwide. The Group has business interests in diverse areas including power transmission and distribution equipment and services, paper and pulp, energy and infrastructure, food processing, farm forestry, chemicals, IT and ITES. Led by Gautam Thapar, Avantha demonstrates strong leadership globally and emerges as a focused corporate, leveraging its knowledge, leadership and operations, adding lasting value for its stakeholders and investors. For more information on Avantha group, please visit www.avanthagroup.com.