Tiger to play in the new Turkish Airlines Open
Turkish Airlines has been announced as the title sponsor of the European Tour’s new $7 million event in Turkey from Nov. 7-10, a tournament which will not only form part of the inaugural Final Series on The Race to Dubai, but one which will also feature world No. 1 Tiger Woods.
The Turkish Airlines Open will take place at The Montgomerie Maxx Royal in Belek, Antalya, the week before the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, and Woods, the 14-time Major champion, will be part of the 78-man field, having also played in last year’s Turkish Airlines World Golf Final — a precursor to the new European Tour event.
Woods, who has already won four times this season on the PGA TOUR including the recent THE PLAYERS Championship, said, “I had a great time during my first visit to Turkey. Turkish Airlines, the Turkish Golf Federation and the fans who came to watch made it a really special event, and I’m looking forward to playing there once again.”
Last year’s eight-man event, won by Englishman Justin Rose at the nearby Antalya Golf Club, provided a taste of the world-class golf to come in Turkey, and the new Turkish Airlines Open now becomes a fully-sanctioned European Tour event.
It will form a central part of The Final Series, the new four-tournament conclusion to The Race to Dubai comprising the $7 million BMW Masters, the $8.5 million WGC-HSBC Champions, the $7 million Turkish Airlines Open and the $8 million DP World Tour Championship, Dubai — offering a combined prize fund of $30.5 million.
It is not only in the professional golfing arena that Turkish Airlines will have an influence in 2013, as the airline is also title sponsoring a new amateur event — the Turkish Airlines World Golf Cup — which will span 12 cities around the world this year, expanding to 24 in 2014.
This year has already seen Dubai, Singapore and Tokyo stage events, with the tournament set to continue in Seoul, Beijing, New York, Moscow, Milan, Frankfurt, Paris, Delhi and London.
The 2013 Turkish Airlines World Golf Cup Final will conclude in Antalya at the same time as the Turkish Airlines Open, with the winner of the tournament having the chance to partner with Tiger Woods himself during the Pro-Am of the Turkish Airlines Open.
