The Asian Tour will make a welcome return to Pakistan after an 11-year hiatus for the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) Open Golf Championship which will be staged from July 24 to 27, it was announced on Tuesday.
The CNS Open Golf Championship will attract a talented cast of Asian Tour stars to the $300,000 event which will be played in the country's oldest golf course, the Karachi Golf Club, according to a release.
The CNS Open Golf Championship has been staged on the local circuit since 1995, making it the longest running professional golf event in Pakistan. By joining the Asian Tour, the tournament will receive official ranking points and give local golfers an opportunity to play alongside some of the region's leading players.
The Chief of Naval Staff was delighted to bring the CNS Open Golf Championship on the Asian Tour. The last time an Asian Tour event was staged in Pakistan was in 2006 and 2007. Last year, the Asian Development Tour (ADT) sanctioned a tournament in the country for the first time.
"This is great news for golf in Pakistan. We are thrilled to welcome the Asian Tour and its talented members to our beautiful country. It has been 11 years since we last staged an Asian Tour event and we are proud to work together with all sponsors to make this tournament a huge success," said the Chief of Naval Staff.
The staging of the CNS Open will also boost the chances of the local golfers to improve on their OWGR ranking and give them a better opportunity to try and qualify for the Japan Olympic Games in 2020.
More From This Section
"There was a huge representation of Asian golfers in the last Olympic Games and we hope to provide a viable platform for our golfers to improve on their world ranking. It is also our goal to promote golf among the younger generation in hopes that we will have a Pakistani golfer playing and contending regularly on the Asian Tour in the future," the Chief of Naval Staff added.
Asian Tour Chief Executive Officer Josh Burack applauded the efforts of the Chief of Naval Staff and the Karachi Golf Club to stage an Asian Tour tournament in Pakistan.
--IANS
pur/vm