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Johnnie Walker has made his final Classic strides

The Johnnie Walker Classic, the tournament that introduced world-class professional golf to the region on an annual basis, is to disappear from the calendar in 2010.

Boasting Tiger Woods, Nick Faldo, Greg Norman and Ernie Els among its elite champions, the event that was inaugurated in 1990 will leave a huge hole in the schedules of the Asian Tour, the European Tour and the PGA Tour of Australasia.

During the course of its history, the Classic billed itself as the Asia Pacific’s premier luxury golf event - living up to that claim with world-class fields and world-class hospitality and entertainment.

The Classic gained a reputation as one of the world’s outstanding tournaments, continually attracting outstanding players, huge galleries and worldwide television coverage.

First played at the Hong Kong Golf Club in 1990 when then world number one Faldo emerged triumphant, the Classic broke new ground by not only being the first tournament to be jointly sanctioned by the European, Asian and Australasian Tours, but also by being unique in that the event was played in eight countries and at 13 golf clubs over the past two decades.

As well as Hong Kong, the Classic was staged in Thailand, Singapore, Australia, the Philippines, Chinese Taipei, India and mainland China.

Prior to what proved to be the 19th and final edition of the event at The Vines Resort and Country Club in February, Johnnie Walker’s Global Brand Director David Gates said: “This world-class tournament is an opportunity for us to build relationships on many levels, with our consumers, with our trade, and with the players themselves.

“Most of all, the tournament is a platform to promote the philosophy of personal progress that lies at the heart of the Johnnie Walker brand and is reflected in its Keep Walking campaign.

"This philosophy is about inspiring personal progress, inspiring people to take the next step on their journey towards their goals. Professional golfers are inspiring examples of this message as they have overcome challenges to excel at the highest level of the sport. We hope that the tournament inspires others to follow their own dreams."

Although the event did not produce an Asian winner, it helped inspire many youngsters around the region, including Lam Chih Bing, now ranked as Singapore’s number one golfer.

Lam always had a high regard for the Classic, having watched the stars of the game perform at his doorstep when it was staged at Singapore Island Country Club in 1993. “When I was a kid, I watched my first Johnnie Walker Classic when it came to Singapore and they had great players like Greg Norman, Nick Faldo and Fred Couples then. I was like a kid in a candy shop. I was there every day and even skipped school to watch the event,” recalled Lam.

Although the end of the Johnnie Walker Classic marks the end of an era for golf in Asia, it’s likely that the Scotch whisky brand with the Striding Man will retain connections with the game in this part of the world.

July 10, 2009