The Asian Tour will welcome a new event on its record 2008 Schedule following a landmark agreement to stage the Singha Thailand PGA Championship presented by The Sports Authority of Thailand next month.
 
The US$500,000 tournament will be played at the highly acclaimed Santiburi Country Club Chiang Rai in northern Thailand from June 26-29, 2008 where it will bring the curtains down on the first half of the season.
 
The latest addition will increase the Asian Tour’s burgeoning Schedule to 28 tournaments and an all-time high of US$38.2 million in prize money this season.
 
The Singha Thailand PGA Championship presented by The Sports Authority of Thailand, which will be sanctioned by the Asian Tour and Thailand PGA, will also mark the first time that the region’s governing body is working hand-in-hand with the Thailand PGA towards the development of the professional game.    
 
Singha Corporation and Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) are the main sponsors of this new and exciting initiative which will increase the number of Asian Tour events in Thailand to four this year.
 
Asian Tour’s Senior Vice President Gerry Norquist lauded the inclusion of the Singha Thailand PGA Championship presented by The Sports Authority of Thailand, saying the new tournament will inject greater impetus for Thailand’s aspiring professionals to stamp their mark in Asia.
 
“On behalf of our talented players, I would like to extend our fullest appreciation to Singha, Sports Authority of Thailand and the Thailand PGA for their commitment in this exciting endeavour. They share in our vision and aspiration to promote professional golf and I believe the tournament will be very successful,” said Norquist.
 
“Over the past decade, Thailand has produced many great champions in the shape of Boonchu Ruangkit, Prayad Marksaeng, Thongchai Jaidee and Thaworn Wiratchant, just to name a few, and we are confident the Singha Thailand PGA Championship presented by The Sports Authority of Thailand will offer greater exposure and opportunity for the country’s rising and young stars to excel in the game of golf.
 
“We will continue to work closely with our key partners in Thailand to grow golf and it is tremendous to see that Thailand will now stage four tournaments on the Asian Tour this season.”
 
The field for the new tournament will include over 100 Asian Tour members and in excess of 50 Thai players.
 
The stunning Santiburi Country Club Chiang Rai was designed by renowned golf architect Robert Trent Jones Jr. and since its opening in 1992, the par 72, 7,113-yard masterpiece has received widespread acclamation. For the tournament, organisers will turn it into a par-71 course.
 
The well-maintained golf course weaves its way around natural rolling hills and lakes, with the first nine holes offering a hilly challenge while the inward nine sweeps through steep valleys and a chain of three lakes.
 
The golf course is owned by Santi Bhirombhakdi, the owner of Singha. He has also been the man behind the establishment of Santiburi Samui Country Club which stages the Bangkok Airways Open on the holiday isle of Samui and also Royal Hua Hin Golf Club