GALAXY OF STARS LIINE UP AT BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE EUROPEAN TOURNo fewer than 12 Major champions, boasting some 19 Major titles between them, will feature in the BMW PGA Championship later this month, when a glittering array of talent, including six of the top seven players in the world, descend on Wentworth Club.
At the close of entries yesterday, a stunning line-up of winners, including the four current Major Champions, will be vying to win The European Tour’s flagship event and the €750,000 first prize over the iconic West Course from May 26 – 29.
South African Charl Schwartzel, the new Masters Champion, will be joined by Martin Kaymer, Graeme McDowell and and Louis Oosthuizen, as the event welcomes all four ‘Major Men’ to Wentworth Club at the same time – a unique occurrence in the long and distinguished history of the Championship.
They are joined by a pair of genuine superstars who are members of the elite ‘Three Major Club’ – Ernie Els of South Africa, the architect behind the recent renovations to the West Course, and Ireland’s Padraig Harrington, a talisman for the current crop of Major winners with his three successes in the space of 13 months from July 2007 to August 2008.
Retief Goosen of South Africa, Spain’s José Maria Olazabal and American John Daly, who all have a pair of Major titles to their names, are competing along with New Zealand’s Michael Campbell, Paul Lawrie of Scotland and Korean Y E Yang.
Six of the current top seven players in the Official World Golf Ranking – Lee Westwood (World Number One), Kaymer (Two), Luke Donald (Three) and McDowell (Five), Rory McIlroy (Six) and Paul Casey (Seven) – will be present and all but 2009 Champion Casey are trying to win their first BMW PGA Championship. Donald came close last year but had to settle for second behind champion Simon Khan, who blitzed through the field on the final day with a brilliant six under par 66.