STARS ARRIVE AT THE TA SHEE FOR THE BMW ASIAN OPEN SHOOT OUT

The BMW Asian Open will kick off Tuesday at 12:30pm with free entry to a star studded opening ceremony that will include Vice President Liu. The Taiwan Vice President will be joined by international star golfers Vijay Singh, New Zealander Michael Campbell, England’s Nick Faldo, Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez and Jose Maria Olazabal. Following the Opening ceremony, there will be a Shoot Out competition comprising these star golfers at 1pm.

The format of the shoot out competition will see ten players play individual balls with the worst score dropping out on each hole. In the event of a playoff, there will be a ‘special shot’ decided upon by the tournament referee. This exciting competition will set the scene for a thrilling tournament week that promises some of the best golf in Asia.

John Daly, two times Major Champion and current holder of The BMW International Open has withdrawn from the BMW Asian Open because of his fear of flying. The American golfer has cut down his air travel dramatically since the attacks on America on September 11th and the recent air crash in New York. Daly is disappointed not to be competing in the 1.5US$ million event as a goal of his was to capture two BMW titles in one season. John Daly will also not be competing in the Omega Hong Kong Open.

“I was looking forward to playing in both events but in the present climate I do not feel comfortable flying. I am disappointed and I must apologise to the golf fans in Asia and both BMW and Omega but I am sure that they understand my feelings,” said Daily.

“When the situation has calmed down I will return to Asia, where I have enjoyed playing so many times before,” added the 35-year-old.

The BMW Asian Open will welcome New Zealand’s Michael Campbell and Denmark’s Soren Hansen, who finished runners up in the recent World Cup Championships in Japan. Both golfers narrowly lost to South Africa in an exciting climax to the World Championship tournament.

Sixty golfers from both the European and Asian PGA Tours will tee up in Asia’s richest ever event the BMW Asian Open at The Westin Resort, Ta Shee, Taiwan from 22nd – 25th November 2001.

Daily ticket and season tickets are available at over 200 ticket offices of Era in Taiwan. The price for daily tickets on Thursday and Friday is NT300 and tickets on Saturday and Sunday will be NT400 per ticket. Season tickets are available for NT800.