MONTY RETURNS TO CELTIC MANOR
WALES OPEN NEXT MONTH

COLIN Montgomerie has announced he will be returning to South Wales to tee up in The Celtic Manor Wales Open next month.
Montgomerie figured prominently on the leaderboard throughout last year’s event before finishing fourth and makes the journey back with the aim of landing his first title in Wales, one of the few tour stops in Europe where he has yet to win a tournament.
Swedish Ryder Cup star Robert Karlsson fended off Montgomerie, Paul Broadhurst and Jose-Filipe Lima to bank the £250,000 winner’s cheque after four days of fantastic golf in 2006.
This year’s field has already been boosted by the announcement that two-time US Open champion Retief Goosen will be making his debut in The Celtic Manor Wales Open from May 31 to June 3.
Now in its eighth year at the host venue for the 2010 Ryder Cup, and carrying a prize fund of £1.5m, The Celtic Manor Wales Open is one of the top ten events on the European Tour and continues to enjoy a prime early summer date the week after the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
Montgomerie said: “I have thoroughly enjoyed playing in The Celtic Manor Wales Open since making my debut in the event in 2003 and I have watched the tournament grow dramatically in the last four years.
“Every year the playing field seems to get stronger but I’m hoping I’ll be able to mount another strong challenge for the trophy again this year. I always get a fantastic reception from the Welsh golf fans and hopefully I can give them even more to cheer by getting myself into contention on the Sunday of the event.”
Montgomerie has always been a popular competitor with the tournament galleries and has also captained an All-Star Cup team, featuring celebrities like Catherine Zeta Jones, Ronan Keating and Chris Evans, at The Celtic Manor Resort in 2005 and 2006.
The Ryder Cup hero has further strengthened his close association with the Resort in the last 12 months by designing a new course which will bear his name. "The Montgomerie" is scheduled to open in July and the burgeoning course architect will be keen to oversee the final preparations after he steps off the neighbouring Roman Road course during The Celtic Manor Wales Open.
“It was a great honour to be asked to design a new course at The Celtic Manor Resort,” said the Scot. “It is on a spectacular piece of land and I have been keeping a close eye on developments during the course build.
“The course is shaping up nicely as a testing challenge that is different to the other courses at the Resort. This will be a great opportunity for me to take another look at some of the finishing touches during The Celtic Manor Wales Open.”
Tournament Director Jon Phelps is understandably delighted by the return to the event of such a prolific winner and a player with such strong ties to Celtic Manor.
“Colin Montgomerie has been a brilliant ambassador for this tournament,” he said.
“I’m sure he will once again be one of the golfers most closely watched by the galleries and we look forward to many more of the European Tour’s brightest stars following the lead of Colin and Retief by choosing to play in The Celtic Manor Wales Open.”
The Celtic Manor Wales Open always aims to provide an experience that is much more than just a golf tournament. Ladies Day, complete with champagne hospitality, on the Saturday of the event has become one of the hottest dates on the sporting social calendar, relaxed master-classes on the range give spectators a unique insight into some of their favourite players, and a family tented village complete with Kidz Zone provides additional entertainment for all.
For ticket, hospitality and sponsorship information, call the Celtic Manor events team on 01633 410318 or visit www.walesopen.com