Sorenstam to play in China at last

World No 2 Annika Sorenstam will make her maiden appearance in a professional tournament in China when the Swede competes in the Suzhou Taihu Ladies Open from Oct 30 to Nov 2.

World No 2 Annika Sorenstam will make her maiden appearance in a professional tournament in China when the Swede competes in the Suzhou Taihu Ladies Open from Oct 30 to Nov 2.



The event, tri-sanctioned by the Ladies Asian Golf Tour , Ladies European Tour and the China Golf Association, will have special significance for the former world No 1 as this will be the final time that she will compete in a professional tournament, having announced that she is stepping away from competitive golf at the end of the season.



The event will offer the prize purse of 200,000 euros and will be held at Suzong Taihu International Golf Club, in Jiangsu province.



"I'm delighted to be coming over to play in the first ever Ladies European Tour event in China. Having started my professional career in Europe, I feel a very strong bond with the Tour and to be able to share this historic moment with my fellow European players is a big thrill," Sorenstam said.



"It's great also to see that the Suzhou Taihu Ladies Open 2008 is a true international event with not only competitors from the Ladies European Tour but also a large number from Asia, and particularly from China. China represents the future and I would love to see women's golf develop strongly there."



"We're delighted that the Ladies European Tour is coming to China," said Zhang Xiaoning, deputy chairman and secretary-general of the China Golf Association. "And we're particularly proud that one of the all time great players in women's golf, Annika Sorenstam, will compete. It presents Chinese lady professionals with some really tough competition and will be a great motivation for them to raise their performance to the highest level."



"It's our first event ever in China and will be a historic occasion for us," Alex Armas, executive director of the Ladies European Tour said. "At a time of year when the weather in Europe is turning against us, it's important to be able to extend the Tour's season and give our players an opportunity to come here to compete."



LAGT chief executive Aylwin Tai welcomed the new event and thanked Suzong Taihu International Golf Club for its foresight in sponsoring this event.



"The LAGT events are getting bigger and bigger. We need to elevate the status and prestige of LAGT," he said. "We have been very successful as a few players on our Tour have already chalked up victories in the US LPGA and Japan LPGA, and also did relatively well in the LET tournaments."



Source: China Daily