Ghei invited to Japan Tour Championship

UBS has extended a sponsors’ invitation to Asian Tour star Gaurav Ghei for this month’s UBS Japan Golf Tour Championship, one of the most prestigious events in Japanese men’s golf.

The tournament, considered the ‘Players Championship’ of the men’s game in Japan, will be played from June 28-July 1 over the West Course at Shishido Hills Country Club, located about 90 minutes northeast of Tokyo, and offers a prize purse of ¥150 million (about US$1.25 million).

For Ghei, the opportunity comes as reward for an impressive opening half of the 2007 season. Courtesy of April’s Pine Valley Beijing Open victory and two further top-10 finishes, he has risen to seventh on the UBS Order of Merit and is on track for his best season on the Asian Tour with more than US$210,000 in earnings so far.

The decision by UBS, a leading financial organisation and one of the most significant supporters of golf in the Asia Pacific region, to invite Ghei comes as part of the bank’s pan-regional approach to sponsoring golf in Asia Pacific, a portfolio that along with the Japan event also includes the UBS Hong Kong Open and the Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit.

Said Ghei: “I have enjoyed a good run of form this season on the Asian Tour. The main factor has been my putting and I have been lucky to have a good spell with the putter. I have been hitting the ball consistently, but nothing spectacular, although on the greens it has been great. Having a sponsor like UBS to reward players who are playing well definitely motivates other players to work harder.”

Added Andy Yamanaka, Senior Director of Competitions, Japan Golf Tour: “We are excited about having Gaurav at our championship and believe he will be a great addition to our strong international field. He is one of the leading players on the UBS Order of Merit and it is great to see such a good international player compete against our top players for the UBS Japan Golf Tour Championship title.”

Also expected to be in the field will be Frankie Minoza from the Philippines and Thailand’s Prayad Marksaeng, both of whom are exempt players on the Japan Golf Tour, bringing to three the number of the UBS Order of Merit’s top-10 players competing at Shishido Hills.

The three, along with the rest of the 132-man field, will have extra incentive at one of Japan’s highest-profile events with the winner receiving entry into the US$8 million Bridgestone Invitational. The World Golf Championship tournament, to be played from August 2-5 at Firestone Country Club in the United States, was won by Tiger Woods for the fifth time in 2006.

Ghei added: “Golf is a game where you need to improve by competing with the top players. So it’s great that Asian Tour players are getting opportunities to play in events like the UBS Japan Golf Tour Championship where we get to compete against Japan’s best players. It gives me an opportunity to see how I measure against players like that.”

While he has played only once before in Japan and admits to having ‘no clue’ about the Shishido Hills layout, Ghei is eagerly anticipating his opportunity. “I heard you have to drive the ball well in Japan and the greens are a lot quicker than what we play in Asia.

“Amandeep (Johl) played there last year and he said that it was a really good course. I’m looking forward to it. I have played in a lot of events this year, so my preparation will not be any different. I will treat it like any other tournament and I’m very excited to play in it,” he said.

Last year, Tatsuhiko Takahashi claimed the UBS Japan Golf Tour Championship after closing with a final-round 68 to finish on seven-under 273. That provided a three-shot margin over Tetsuji Hiratsuka, with SK Ho and Tommy Nakajima another stroke adrift in third.

UBS entered a partnership with the event for the first time last year, seeing it join the UBS Hong Kong Open, UBS Order of Merit, BMW Asian Open, Faldo Series Asia and The UBS Golf Club television show in an unrivalled portfolio of regional golf sponsorships.

June 7, 2007

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