Singapore Open (golf)
Encyclopedia
The Singapore Open is a golf
tournament in Singapore
that has been sanctioned by the Asian Tour
from that tour's inception in 1995 and by the European Tour since 2009
. It was founded in 1961 and was staged annually until 2001, when it was won by Thaworn Wiratchant
. It was then cancelled for lack of sponsorship. Other winners in the years leading up to this included American Shaun Micheel
in 1998, who went on to win the 2003 PGA Championship
.
The Singapore Golf Association initially hoped to revive the event after skipping only one year, but the tournament was not resuscitated until 2005, when sponsorship was secured from the Sentosa Leisure Group. The 2005 prize fund was $
2 million, which made the Singapore Open by far the richest tournament exclusive to the Asia
n Tour that was not co-sanctioned by the European Tour, a status it retained until the European Tour first co-sanctioned the event in 2009. Asian Tour chief executive Louis Martin claimed when the revival of the tournament was announced, "Competing for a prize purse of two million US dollars will give our playing membership a huge boost and elevate the Asian Tour to a new level." The 2005 event was played in September.
The 2006 Singapore Open offered a purse of US$3 million with a winner's share of US$475,000. In May 2006 it was announced that Barclays Bank would sponsor the event for five years from 2006 and that the prize fund will be increased to US$4 million in 2007 and US$5 million in 2008. In 2011, the purse was US$6,000,000.
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
tournament in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
that has been sanctioned by the Asian Tour
Asian Tour
The Asian Tour is the principal men's professional golf tour in Asia except for Japan, which has its own Japan Golf Tour, which is also a full member of the International Federation of PGA Tours. The Asian Tour is administered from offices in Singapore...
from that tour's inception in 1995 and by the European Tour since 2009
2009 European Tour
The 2009 European Tour was the 38th series of golf tournaments since the European Tour officially began in 1972. There were major changes for the 2009 season as the tour entered a partnership agreement with Dubai based Leisurecorp...
. It was founded in 1961 and was staged annually until 2001, when it was won by Thaworn Wiratchant
Thaworn Wiratchant
Thaworn Wiratchant is a Thai professional golfer. He is one of only two golfers to have won 10 or more events on the Asian Tour....
. It was then cancelled for lack of sponsorship. Other winners in the years leading up to this included American Shaun Micheel
Shaun Micheel
Shaun Carl Micheel is an American golfer who is best known for his surprise victory in 2003 in one of golf's major championships, the PGA Championship....
in 1998, who went on to win the 2003 PGA Championship
2003 PGA Championship
The 2003 PGA Championship was the 85th PGA Championship held from August 14-17 at Oak Hill Country Club, East Course in Rochester, New York. Shaun Micheel won his first major by two strokes over Chad Campbell.-First round:-Second round:-Third round:...
.
The Singapore Golf Association initially hoped to revive the event after skipping only one year, but the tournament was not resuscitated until 2005, when sponsorship was secured from the Sentosa Leisure Group. The 2005 prize fund was $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
2 million, which made the Singapore Open by far the richest tournament exclusive to the Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n Tour that was not co-sanctioned by the European Tour, a status it retained until the European Tour first co-sanctioned the event in 2009. Asian Tour chief executive Louis Martin claimed when the revival of the tournament was announced, "Competing for a prize purse of two million US dollars will give our playing membership a huge boost and elevate the Asian Tour to a new level." The 2005 event was played in September.
The 2006 Singapore Open offered a purse of US$3 million with a winner's share of US$475,000. In May 2006 it was announced that Barclays Bank would sponsor the event for five years from 2006 and that the prize fund will be increased to US$4 million in 2007 and US$5 million in 2008. In 2011, the purse was US$6,000,000.
Winners
- 2011 Gonzalo Fernández-CastañoGonzalo Fernández-CastañoGonzalo Fernández-Castaño is a Spanish professional golfer.Fernández-Castaño was born in Madrid. He turned professional in 2004 and came eighth at that year's European Tour Qualifying School....
- - 2010 Adam Scott -
- 2009 Ian PoulterIan PoulterIan James Poulter is an English professional golfer who is a member of the world's top two professional golf tours, the U.S.-based PGA Tour and the European Tour. He has previously been as high as number five in the world rankings...
- - 2008 Jeev Milkha SinghJeev Milkha SinghJeev Milkha Singh is the first Indian professional golfer to become a member of the European Tour. He is the highest ranked Indian golfer in the world and first broke into the top 100 in October 2006.-Early life:...
- - 2007 Ángel CabreraAngel CabreraÁngel Cabrera is an Argentine professional golfer who plays on both the European Tour and PGA Tour. He is known affectionately as "El Pato" in Spanish or in English as "The duck" for his waddling gait. He is a former U.S. Open champion and Masters champion. He is the first Argentine to win either...
- - 2006 Adam Scott -
- 2005 Adam Scott -
- 2002-04 No tournament
- 2001 Thaworn WiratchantThaworn WiratchantThaworn Wiratchant is a Thai professional golfer. He is one of only two golfers to have won 10 or more events on the Asian Tour....
- - 2000 Jyoti RandhawaJyoti RandhawaJyoti Singh Randhawa is an Indian professional golfer who was ranked in the top 100 of the world and is the third-highest Indian in the world rankings.-Career:...
- - 1999 Kenny Druce -
- 1998 Shaun MicheelShaun MicheelShaun Carl Micheel is an American golfer who is best known for his surprise victory in 2003 in one of golf's major championships, the PGA Championship....
- - 1997 Zaw Moe -
Myanmar - 1996 John Kernohan -
- 1995 Steven ConranSteven ConranSteven James Conran is an Australian professional golfer.Conran plays on the Japan Golf Tour. He has won once.-External links:*...
- - 1994 Kyi Hla HanKyi Hla HanKyi Hla Han is a former professional golfer from Myanmar and the current executive chairman of the Asian Tour.Kyi Hla Han turned professional in 1980. He recorded his first professional win at the 1983 Malaysian PGA Championship. He played on the Asian Tour from its debut season in 1995 until 2004...
- Myanmar - 1993 Paul Moloney -
- 1992 Bill Israelson -
- 1991 Jack Kay -
- 1990 Antolin Fernando -
- 1989 Lu Chien-soon -
- 1988 Greg Bruckner -
- 1987 Peter FowlerPeter FowlerPeter Randall Fowler is an Australian golfer.Fowler was born in Hornsby, New South Wales. He turned professional in 1977 and won the Australian Open in 1983. He has spent a large part of his career playing on the European Tour, where he made the top one hundred on the Order of Merit every year...
- - 1986 Greg TurnerGreg TurnerGreg Turner is a New Zealand professional golfer.Turner was born in Dunedin. He attended Oklahoma University in the United States but has spent most of his career on the PGA Tour of Australasia and the European Tour. He won four tournaments on the European Tour and achieved a career best ranking...
- - 1985 Tze-Ming ChenTze-Ming ChenTze-Ming Chen is a Taiwanese professional golfer. In the U.S., he is often referred to as T.M. Chen. His younger brother, Tze-Chung Chen, is also a professional golfer....
- - 1984 Tom SieckmannTom SieckmannThomas Edward Sieckmann is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and Nationwide Tour.Sieckmann was born in York, Nebraska. He won several amateur tournaments in his home state while growing up, and received the 1974 Nebraska Golf Association's Amateur of the Year award...
- - 1983 Lu Chien-soon -
- 1982 Hsu Sheng-sanHsu Sheng-sanHsu Sheng-san is a Taiwanese professional golfer.Hsu played on the Japan Golf Tour, winning once.-Other wins:*1967 Philippine Open *1976 Malaysian Open*1982 Indian Open, Singapore Open-External links:...
- - 1981 Mya AyeMya Aye (golfer)Mya Aye is a Burmese professional golfer.Mya Aye played on the Japan Golf Tour, winning twice.-Other wins:*1976 Indonesia Open*1981 Singapore Open-External links:...
- Myanmar - 1980 Kurt Cox -
- 1979 Lu Hsi-chuenLu Hsi-chuenLu Hsi-chuen is a Taiwanese professional golfer.Lu won several national opens throughout southeast Asia. Lu also played on the Japan Golf Tour, winning twice.Lu is a golf instructor at Sunrise Golf Academy in Yangmei, Taiwan.-Japan Golf Tour wins:...
- - 1978 Terry GaleTerry GaleTerry R. Gale is an Australian professional golfer.Gale had a successful amateur career before turning professional at a relatively advanced age in 1976. From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s he won regularly on the PGA Tour of Australasia, the Japan Golf Tour and the pre-Asian Tour Asian circuit...
- - 1977 Hsu Chi-san -
- 1976 Kesahiko Uchida -
- 1975 Yutaka Suzuki -
- 1974 Eleuterio Nival -
- 1973 Ben ArdaBen ArdaBen Arda was a Filipino professional golfer.Arda, known as Bantam Ben and the Toy Tiger because of his small stature, was one of Asia's leading golfers during the 1960s and 1970s. He was the first Filipino to qualify for the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship...
- - 1972 Takaaki KonoTakaaki KonoTakaaki Kono was a Japanese professional golfer.Kono played on the Japan Golf Tour, winning twice. He also won several pre-Tour events in Japan and Southeast Asia.-Other wins:*1967 Nippon Series...
- - 1971 Haruo YasudaHaruo YasudaHaruo Yasuda is a Japanese professional golfer.Yasuda played on the Japan Golf Tour, winning six times. He also won several pre-Tour events in Japan and Southeast Asia.-Japan Golf Tour wins:*1974 Tokyo Charity Classic...
- - 1970 Hsieh Yung-yoHsieh Yung-yoHsieh Yung-yo is a Taiwanese professional golfer.Hsieh played throughout Asia, winning national opens in South Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore, and the Philippines...
- - 1969 Tomio Kamada -
- 1968 Hsieh Yung-yoHsieh Yung-yoHsieh Yung-yo is a Taiwanese professional golfer.Hsieh played throughout Asia, winning national opens in South Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore, and the Philippines...
- - 1967 Ben ArdaBen ArdaBen Arda was a Filipino professional golfer.Arda, known as Bantam Ben and the Toy Tiger because of his small stature, was one of Asia's leading golfers during the 1960s and 1970s. He was the first Filipino to qualify for the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship...
- - 1966 Ross Newdick -
- 1965 Frank PhillipsFrank Phillips (golfer)Frank Phillips is an Australian professional golfer. He was rated one of the best ball strikers of his era winning the 1957 and 1961 Australian Opens...
- - 1964 Ted BallTed BallEdward "Ted" Ball is an Australian professional golfer. He has had a huge amount of success playing in Australia, winning 11 times on the PGA Tour of Australasia, and winning over 50 tournaments in his career....
- - 1963 Alan Brookes -
South Africa - 1962 Brian Wilkes - South Africa
- 1961 Frank PhillipsFrank Phillips (golfer)Frank Phillips is an Australian professional golfer. He was rated one of the best ball strikers of his era winning the 1957 and 1961 Australian Opens...
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See also
- Singapore MastersSingapore MastersThe Singapore Masters is an annual men's professional golf tournament which has been played in Singapore since 2001. It is co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the European Tour, and is one of many European Tour events established in East Asia since the early 1990s.There have been two important...
- a golf tournament which is co-sanctioned by the Asian and European Tours