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Zhang and Shang feel good about Xiamen
 Zhang Lianwei and Shang Lei are both in high spirits ahead of this week's US$100,000 Dell Championship starting on Thursday.
Zhang is looking to claim his third successive event on the Tour, after winning last year's season-ending Omega Championship and the Guangzhou Championship two weeks ago, which teed off this year's 10-event circuit.
Although he missed last year's event in Xiamen, the 42-year-old remembers playing the course at Orient (Xiamen) Golf and Country Club on the Asian circuit.
"I played in the first Orient Masters at this same course in Xiamen in 1998, exactly 10 years ago, and I've just found out that Dell China was established in Xiamen that same year. I hope this is a good omen for me this week," he said.
"I've always wanted to come back here and play, so it's great to be doing it in a year in which Dell is celebrating its 10th anniversary in China. Their presence gives the whole event a very high-tech feel," added Zhang, who in 2004 became the first Chinese to play in the US Masters.
Shang, who has a four-month-old baby boy, has been spending much of this year on the Asian Tour after progressing through the qualifying school.
However, the 26-year-old is excited about returning to the venue where he narrowly missed out on winning last year's Xiamen Championship, losing out by one shot to Li Chao, the eventual Omega Order of Merit champion.
"I was runner-up that time, so I'm really looking forward to this year's event, which has a bigger, better feel with the new sponsorship," said Shang, who was the fifth-highest ranked Chinese player in last week's KEB Invitational in Shanghai.
Shang was up to speed about Dell's activities in China after enjoying a tour of the Xiamen facility in the morning.
Peter Marrs, Dell China's Director of Marketing, who conducted the tour of the enormous facility, believes this week's event in Xiamen is an opportune time and place for Dell to mark its first title sponsorship of a golf tournament in China.
"It's an exciting year for us, as it's the 10th anniversary of Dell China. Furthermore, we believe golf is a great association for Dell as we want to be part of a sport that's growing in China," Marrs said.
"Finally, we chose to sponsor the event in Xiamen as we have our main China headquarters here and have long played a big part in the local community."
Dell is the Omega China Tour's Official Computer Systems and Monitors partner, and its rapid growth in China goes hand in hand with its strong association with the fast-growing circuit, which has added two events a year since its inauguration in 2005.
"There's a lot of synergy between Dell and golf in China. Golf is absolutely booming in China, with the number of players set to double in the next two years," Marrs said.
"Likewise, Dell is fast growing in China, which is already our second-biggest market, behind the US. In fact, we believe China will be the world's biggest computer market in 10 years, with the demand comparable to that of today's top 10 buying nations combined."
Marrs also believes that Dell's continued effort to become the world's greenest technology company makes golf a natural association.
"Golf is a green sport played in beautiful environments, so we're really happy to be associated with this type of activity. As a sponsor of the whole Omega China Tour, we'll have a continued presence throughout the circuit," he said. "Luckily, we've got great weather this week, so we're expecting a great tournament."
March 26, 2008
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