The Hindu : Sport / Golf : Golf's future is in Asia, says Nicklaus

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Apr 26, 2007
ePaper

Sport

Sport - Golf

Golf's future is in Asia, says Nicklaus

Beijing : Golf legend Jack Nicklaus, making a special appearance at the inaugural Pine Valley Beijing Open, believes that the future of golf lies in Asia.

Nicklaus, winner of a record 18 Major titles during his illustrious career, said the Asian Tour will continue to grow

Nicklaus, popularly know as `Golden Bear', was in Pine Valley Golf Resort and Country Club to attend the club's phase II course opening ceremony and conduct a junior clinic, held in conjunction with $500,000 Pine Valley Beijing Open which starts on Thursday.

Steady growth

``The Asian Tour will continue to grow and Asian players will continue to get better. Asia is the place where the most growth will come from and there will be more young players being introduced to the game here than in any other place by comparison to what we have seen in the past,'' said Nicklaus.

``It is a relatively new game here in Asia and I'm confident the growth will be good in this region,'' added Nicklaus, who designed the 18-hole Jack Nicklaus Signature Course and the 27-hole Jack Nicklaus II Links Course at Pine Valley, the venue for this week's event.

The 67-year-old said the standard of the game in Asia would grow steadily as playing opportunities increase. He, however, feels that Asians must spread their wings to compete at the highest level.

Big step

``Asian players can improve if they keep playing tournaments across the world and compete against the best, that's how to be the best. The world is getting smaller. Now the Asian Tour has events with the European Tour and I think this is a big step in making the world smaller as the game is becoming more global,'' said Nicklaus.

With a staggering 73 US PGA Tour victories under his belt, Nicklaus commended the achievements of Asian Tour-bred players including China's Zhang Lian-wei, Korea's Charlie Wi and former stalwart Choi Kyung-ju and he is confident that with the continued expansion of the Asian Tour, more Asians will break through onto the big stage. — PTI

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport