Chung Shan Product Liang Leaving A Lasting Legacy In China


Singapore (February 25): The year was 1984 - it was a time when China signalled its intention to introduce the game of golf to its people. The Chung Shan Hot Spring Golf Club in Guangdong Province, designed by golf legend Arnold Palmer, was unveiled as the country’s first modern-day golf course. It was to be the catalyst to spark the interest in golf in the decades to follow. While the opening of the Zhuhai club marked the exciting passage of China’s foray into the world of golf, it also played a pivotal role in introducing to the sport a young man by the name of Liang Wen-chong.

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Cobra S2 Drivers And Fairways Delivering 'Exceptional Performance'


Singapore (February 24): Cobra Golf is on a roll. Within days of Cobra ambassador Ian Poulter's victory in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championshbip in Arizona, the golf club manufacturer announced the introduction of the new Cobra S2 Drivers and Fairways. Offering superior accuracy, distance and forgiveness, Cobra says the S2's collective clubface technology, clubhead design and overall engineering result in a family of products that maximise performance for all player types. Speaking during a media launch at Singapore's Laguna National Golf & Country Club, Cobra's Southeast Asian brand manager Rick Brown said: “Avid golfers will benefit from the exceptional performance in the new Cobra S2 Drivers and Fairway Metals."

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Birdie Machine Tseng Switches Into Lower Gear


Singapore (February 23): Tseng Ya-ni has set herself an unusual target for the 2010 LPGA season. The 2008 Rookie of the Year and Major winner and fastest player ever to reach US$2 million in prize money wants to stop trying. Or at least stop trying so hard. "This year I don't have any expectations. I just really want to enjoy it; really enjoy it. It's really easy to say, but hard to do. But my goal this year is just to really enjoy it. I want to relax and just go and have fun. Relaxed is when I play my best golf. When I'm focused and thinking 'be careful of this be careful of that' I can't play good," says Tseng, who enters the new campaign with the demeanour of someone who is putting her thoughts into action, particularly when it comes to thoughts of this week's HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore, the place she calls her second home. "My friends have been sending me messages every day saying: 'I'm so happy you're coming to Singapore'. And I'm happy, too."

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So What's An LPGA Tour Event In Asia Really Like?


Chonburi (February 23): To understand what the LPGA represents in the modern era, one almost has to travel outside US borders. After all, nearly half of the Tour’s schedule takes place internationally. Fans can wake up in the morning Stateside and check scores for the (surprise) finish, but nothing compares to standing alongside thousands of Thai fans beneath the shade of an umbrella. In some ways, it feels like any other well-run tournament back home. But when elephants paint landscapes at a nearby camp and course security warns of cobras in the jungle beyond the rough, US visitors are quickly reminded that it took two full days to get to this place. Last week marked my first trip to an LPGA event in Asia, though it wasn’t my first time travelling East. Three years ago I met Shin Ji-yai at a Korean LPGA event on Jeju Island, and last summer I vacationed in China. Travelling to Asia is always an eye-opening experience, and it helps remind those who follow this Tour that it can’t survive on US money alone.

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Match Play Run Aids Thongchai's Masters Prospects


Singapore (February 22): With his thrilling run to the quarter-finals of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, Thongchai Jaidee enhanced his prospects of earning a ticket to Augusta National in April. At the Ritz Carlton Golf Club in Dove Mountain, the Thai number one defeated England's Ross Fisher, Swede Robert Karlsson and Japan's Ryo Ishikawa. Although he was eventually eliminated by eventual winner Ian Poulter in the last eight, the record book will show that Thongchai finished in a share of fifth place.

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Tarnished Woods Takes First Step Towards New Image


Ponte Vedra Beach (February 20): I’m not a therapist, nor do I play one in Mississippi, but my first thought after Tiger Woods’ 14-minute re-entry statement was this: If he re-reads and believes and acts out the many excellent introspective points he made, he’ll become a highly evolved and changed man. Actions, not words, will determine that. He’s already aware of that. His wife let him know. “As Elin pointed out to me, my real apology to her will not come in the form of words,” Woods said at the TPC Sawgrass in his first public appearance since a Thanksgiving accident led to revelations of infidelity and an indefinite leave of absence. “It will come from my behaviour over time.”

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