Padraig Harrington relishes the opportunity to return to the Hong Kong Golf Club
The three-time major champion, Padraig Harrington, is relishing the opportunity to return to the site of his victory in 2003, the Hong Kong Golf Club, where he will tee off this week at the UBS Hong Kong Open.
The US$2 million tournament is co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the European Tour, and is set to feature some of the prominent names from different parts of the world.
Harrington is one of the strongest additions to the tournament this season, as the Irishman is currently enjoying a decent run of form on the European Tour.
In his 12 starts this season, the 41-year-old Dublin resident has recorded four top-10 finishes. Moreover, his strong track record at the venue makes him a strong contender at the third-last event on the European Tour roster.
Apart from his victory in 2003, he also recorded a second-place finish in the 2004 edition of the tournament.
“Hong Kong is one of the best venues of the year,” he said. “It stands out as a great golf course for me, but I think everybody here this week loves the course. Sometimes you go to a place and half the field might like the course, whereas for the other
half, it might not suit them. But this week everybody loves the course”.
Matt Kuchar, in the meantime, will be making his debut this week in one of the oldest sporting events in Hong Kong.
Talking to the reporters in Wednesday’s press conference, the US PGA Tour’s The Players Championship winner expressed his desire to make a strong start to his campaign in Hong Kong.
According to him, the tournament provides a great opportunity for the American players to test their games outside the United States, while contending against some of the best players in the sport.
“We only arrived last night, but already I can see that Hong Kong is a beautiful city, and one I am really looking forward to getting to know better over the coming days,” he said.
Rory McIlroy, who recently won the Race to Dubai title, will also be back in the field, in a bid to defend his title that he won last year.
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