Luke Donald relishes the opportunity of playing in the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions
The former world number one Luke Donald is relishing the opportunity of playing the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions, slated to start from November 1, 2012.
The last of the four WGCs will be played on the Olazábal Course at the Mission Hills Golf Club in Guangdong, China.
The World Golf Championships are regarded as just one rung down the major golf championships and HSBC Champions is the only WGC that is held outside the United States.
Last year, Donald missed out on the chance of playing the tournament, as he awaited the birth of his second daughter.
This year, he is eagerly waiting to leave an impression at the richest tournament in the Asian region.
According to him, he was really disappointed to announce his withdrawal from the event last year. However, he did not have any other choice because family meant the most to him at that time.
He stated, “I was so disappointed to miss out on playing at the WGC-HSBC Champions last year, although it was for the best possible reason!”
“It is Asia’s flagship event and has become a very significant tournament worldwide, and I think our performances there will be a key factor in deciding both The Race to Dubai and the World Ranking come the end of the year”.
Right from the beginning of the 2012 golf season, Donald has not been able to match his last year’s performances.
Therefore, he now plans to end the current season on a high note, especially with a good finish in China. The last year marked one of the best seasons by an English player in the world of golf.
Donald played a consistent game throughout the year and recorded a total of five victories, collectively on the PGA Tour and the European Tour.
Entering the final phase of the both the tours, he announced his withdrawal from a number of tournaments due to personal commitments.
Still, no one was there to match him on top of the money lists, in any of the European and PGA Tours.
He became the only player in the history of the sport to lead the money lists on both the tours, at the end of the season.
In addition to that, he also managed to add different awards to his resume, including the Vardon Trophy, Byron Nelson Award, PGA Player of the Year award, PGA Tour Player of the Year and the European Tour Golfer of the Year award.
This year, he may not have played the way he did last year. Still, he registered victories at the PGA Tour’s Transitions Championship and European Tour’s BMW PGA Championship.
He now ranks third in the Official World Golf Rankings and believes that he will have to play really well in the remaining tournaments on the roster, to reduce his margin with the leaders.
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