RECORD NUMBER OF ENTRIES FOR ASIAN TOUR Q SCHOOL

Kuala Lumpur: The 2013 Asian Tour Qualifying School in January is poised to surpass the all-time record of over 650 entries from players around the globe, officials announced.

The four designated venues for Stage One, which will be played from January 9-12 and January 16-19 in Hua Hin, Thailand, reached their maximum entries of 132 players each last week while a fifth venue was opened up this week for 30 more players.

This means a grand total of 558 players will battle it out in Stage One to qualify for the all-important Final Stage, which is expected to receive a further 100-plus entries for those who are exempt from Stage One.

The Asian Tour is now only receiving entries to put onto a reserve list for Stage One.

The Final Stage presented by Sports Authority of Thailand will be held at the Imperial Lakeview Golf Club and Springfield Royal Country Club in Hua Hin from January 23-26 where 40 Asian Tour cards will be at stake.

Tour officials are predicting a final total of over 650 golfers for both stages when entries officially close on December 20, 2012.

At the 2012 Qualifying School earlier this year, a total of 426 players teed up in the First Stage where the top-20 per cent finishers qualified for the Final Stage, and joined another 154 exempted players.

Asian Tour Executive Chairman Kyi Hla Han said: “Our 2013 Qualifying School has received such an overwhelming response for the First Stage that we have opened up a fifth venue in Hua Hin.

“We are anticipating our total entries for both stages of Qualifying School to exceed 650 golfers, which will be an Asian Tour record.

“The record numbers is a wonderful testament to the growing popularity and stature of the Asian Tour. As the official sanctioning body for professional golf in Asia and being a full member of the International Federation of PGA Tours, Asian Tour tournaments provide widespread playing opportunities for our players and also deliver the best pathway for players in Asia to qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro through the Official World Golf Ranking.”

In 2012, the Asian Tour will offer an expected minimum of 2,975 Official World Golf Ranking points to players, which will be used to determine the field for the Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro in 2016.

Qualifying School players who do not win Asian Tour cards, will earn playing rights in the secondary Asian Development Tour, which will start receiving Official World Golf Ranking points from 2013 onwards.

In 2012, a total of 27 events in Asia will be sanctioned by the Asian Tour while the Asian Development Tour, which rewards the top-three players with Asian Tour cards, held 13 tournaments on its schedule.

 

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