Red star over the greens

With eight Asian Tour events this year, China is emerging as the future platform for golf

The Asian Golf Tour, which took a break after the last event in Korea three months ago, resumes with the Tianjin TEDA Open in China next week. The $200,000 Tianjin event, which returns to the Tour after a gap of five years, is the third Asian Tour event this year. With three more to come this season, it will establish China as the premier platform for golf in Asia.

This year's Tour, which will finish with 20 events, will by the end have hosted no less than eight of the events in China. The prize money from the events in China would alone have totaled $ 3.4 million, almost one-third of the total prize of the Tour, which is expected to touch $ 11.2 million.

The Tianjin TEDA, to be staged at Tianjin Warner International Golf Club, will have a strong field as several Asian players are expected to participate.

In the past few years, many of the leading Asian stars have graduated to Tours in Japan, Europe and the US, but there is still considerable talent in Asia waiting for a good break. Besides, there are always new faces who are keen to earn their spurs before heading to greener pastures.

Among the first to make the big move from Asia to the US was Choi, who was third at the Masters this year. The past few years have also seen Indians like Jeev Milkha Singh, Jyoti Randhawa and Arjun Atwal move to Japan, Europe and the US.

Thai star Thongchai Jaidee has made a huge impact on the European Tour with a win. Jaidee's consistent showing has even earned him an invitation to the US PGA Championships.

Zhang Lianwei was for long the lone Chinese in international tours, but now the latest Chinese star is Ye Yang, who won the Sun Chlorella title in Japan last week. Another Chinese player, Liang Wen-chong, is touted as the next flagbearer of Chinese golf.

Interestingly, Liang made his professional debut in the Tianjin TEDA Open in 1999 and played in all the four rounds. Liang is still looking for his first win on the Asian Tour and two other Chinese players, Lian Weng Chong and Li Chao, are waiting for their moment too.

In the past few years, a good number of Indians have become regulars on the Asian Tour. After making their mark in Asia, many of them have moved on. Among the current lot waiting for their international breaks are Harmeet Kahlon, Arjun Singh, Amandeep Johl and Feroz Ali. While all these players are seasoned in their own right, they are looking for their big break in Asia.

Rahil Gangjee seems to have found his moment in the opening season with the Volkswagen Masters in China. Attempting to follow his footsteps are the likes of Ashok Kumar, who in his second year as a pro has already emerged as India's number one player. The latest to join the pro tour is Shiv Kapur, who won the amateur title in the Asian Games in Korea two years ago.

Recent stars entering the Tianjin event is Korean star Hur Suk-ho, who twice won in Japan this season and ranked 80th in the world, and former Asian No 1 Lin Keng-chi of Chinese Taipei.

Earlier this year, Boonchu won the Thai Open and became the oldest winner in Asia at 47 years of age. During the last three months, he has managed to play some pro events on the domestic Thai tour and even won one event in Chonburi.

Gangjee, who had once ambitions of becoming a race horse jockey, provided one of the top surprises of the year with his stunning win in the inaugural Volkswagen Masters in China this May. He upstaged a field that Ryder Cup stars Phillip Price and Nick Faldo, China's Zhang Lian-wei and Korea's Kang Wook-soon.

After the Tianjin TEDA Open, the Asian Tour will stage seven more events, three of them in China which includes the Crowne Plaza Shanghai Classic, Sanya Open and Volvo China Open.

The Asian Tour Chief Executive, Louis Martin, observed some months back on a visit to India for the Indian Open, "It is countries like China and India, who hold the key to the future of golf in Asia."

China has no doubt taken the lead in promoting the Asian Tour and has built some of the best golf courses. On the other hand, Indian golf, like Thailand, seems to have thrown up more pro talent "" in terms of depth "" than most other Asian countries.