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Fantasy Golf: HSBC Champions Primer
By Bryan Douglass
World Golf Championships - HSBC Champions
Sheshan International Golf Club at Shanghai, China
- Dates: Thursday, November 5 - Sunday, November 8
- 2009 Purse: $7,000,000
Tournament Schedule
First Round - Wednesday, November 4 - 11pm-3am ET on the Golf Channel
Second Round - Thursday, November 5 - 11pm-3am ET on the Golf Channel
Third Round - Friday, November 6 - 11pm-3am ET on the Golf Channel
Final Round - Saturday, November 7 - 11pm-3am ET on the Golf Channel
NOTE
This event is covered in full by two websites that can be visited here, or at this link as well.
The Course
Sheshan International Golf Club
Course Par Value: 72
Course Yardage: 7,143
Per the Sheshan Golf website:
The Sheshan International Golf Club, designed by Nelson and Haworth, can be found within the Shanghai Sheshan National Tourist and Holiday Zone in close proximity to the famous Sheshan Mountain, found west of Shanghai.
Nelson and Haworth Golf Design has designed more than 70 golf courses all around the globe, and their designing concept of combining the game of golf with traditional cultures is maintained and served with this course.
The 18-hole championship course, measuring 7,140 yards, utilizes bent grass on the greens and Seashore Paspalun for the fairways, tees and rough areas. The course offers deep valleys and rolling hills combined with numerous trees and large spans of water native to this area of the world.
Elevation changes of over 12 meters are found on several holes. The rolling hills of Sheshan will be covered with both pine and deciduous trees and each hole will be separated by trees, insuring players on adjacent fairways will not be able to see each other.
Water has been used throughout the golf course to enhance the aesthetic beauty as well as aid irrigation. All the course's waterways are connected, insuring a constant flow of water throughout the course.
Many of the holes either play along the existing canal, around manmade lakes or over the spectacular 50-meter deep quarry, a unique feature of Sheshan. In addition to the lakes, scenic landscaped streams add to the mountain forest landscape image.
The most unique feature of Sheshan is the dramatic and intimidating quarry. Two holes, 16 and 17 play around and over the quarry, giving the golfer both an awe inspiring view while requiring great golf shots.
These two holes will not only be the signature holes of Shanghai Sheshan Golf Club, but also of the whole Shanghai region.
Holes to Watch
Hole 16 (Par 4, 288 yds): One of the two signature holes on the course, the 16th forces the golfer to a short par 4 facing a difficult uphill climb. The fairway doglegs right with the landing area guarded by a large sand trap along the right edge. It is one of the more difficult landings these golfers will see this season, leaving about 60 yards (if played correctly... some will brave the long drive and attempt to thread the needle, and most will fail) on the pitch to a shallow green showcasing two tough ridges, one in front, one in back.
Hole 17 (Par 3, 191 yds): A short par 3 forces golfers to drive over the canal into a slightly elevated green guarded on all sides up one by sand. Come up short and your ball will roll into oblivion. The rough is kept extremely thick, though the thin slice of earth on the right of the green before the canal offers no relief. It is a very difficult putt, ending one of the more difficult par-3 offerings the professionals will see this season.
NOTE
This event is a new addition to the WGC series as well as the PGA Tour. Before this season, the HSBC Champions was an annual event on the European Tour (and the WGC Series was limited to just three tourneys per season). Thus the leaderboards below, while including many of the elite golfers from around the globe, were not a part of the PGA schedule.
2008 Leaderboard
PLACE / PLAYER / FINAL
1 Sergio Garcia -14 (274)
2 Oliver Wilson -14 (274)
T3 Peter Hanson -13 (275)
T3 Geoff Ogilvy -13 (275)
5 Henrik Stenson -11 (277)
T6 Charles Schwartzel -10 (278)
T6 Adam Scott -10 (278)
T8 Prayad Marksaeng -9 (279)
T8 Phil Mickelson -9 (279)
10 Alvaro Quiros -8 (280)
T11 Padraig Harrington -7 (281)
T11 Peter Lawrie -7 (281)
T11 Paul Casey -7 (281)
2007 Leaderboard
PLACE / PLAYER / FINAL
1 Phil Mickelson -10 (278)
T2 Lee Westwood -10 (278)
T2 Ross Fisher -10 (278)
4 Kevin Stadler -9 (279)
T5 Vijay Singh -8 (280)
T5 Padraig Harrington -8 (280)
7 Steve Webster -7 (281)
8 Andrew McLardy -6 (282)
T9 Henrik Stenson -5 (283)
T9 Paul Casey -5 (283)
11 Louis Oosthuizen -4 (284)
12 Angel Cabrera -3 (285)
2006 Leaderboard
PLACE / PLAYER / FINAL
1 Y.E. Yang -14 (274)
2 Tiger Woods -12 (276)
T3 Michael Campbell -11 (277)
T3 Retief Goosen -11 (277)
5 Marc Warren -10 (278)
T6 Robert Karlsson -8 (280)
T6 Paul Casey -8 (280)
T6 Padriag Harrington -8 (280)
T9 Jim Furyk -7 (281)
T9 KJ Choi -7 (281)
T9 Johan Edfors -7 (281)
T9 Francesco Molinari -7 (281)
T9 Jyoti Randhawa -7 (281)
T14 Colin Montgomerie -6 (282)
T14 John Bickerton -6 (282)
T14 Luke Donald -6 (282)
The Field
#IMGRIGHT#As is true with all of the World Golf Championship events, there are "special" qualification procedures held to determine the field for this event. In the past the HSBC Champions served as a regular event on the European Tour, and for the inaugural launch as a member of the WGC family, the tourney has designed a set of qualification standards organized as such.
1) Winner of the four major tourneys from the PGA Tour - The Masters, the US Open, the Open Championship (aka the British), and the PGA Championship - as well as the winner of THE PLAYERS Championship.
2) Winners of the three World Golf Championship events completed earlier in the PGA schedule - the Accenture Match Play Championship, the CA Championship, and the Bridgestone Invitational.
3) Winners from the 23 PGA Tour co-sponsored events of the 2009 season, identified as those events from the previous season with the highest Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating.
4) The top-five available golfers not otherwise exempt from the final 2009 PGA Tour FedEx Cup Points List.
5) Winners from 23 European Tour sanctioned events from the 2008 HSBC Champions through the event preceding the 2009 WGC-HSBC Champions, which shall be identified as those 23 European Tour events from the 2007 HSBC Champions to the 2008 HSBC Champions with the highest Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating.
6) Top-five available players not otherwise exempt from the European Tour's Race to Dubai Order of Merit as of Oct. 26, 2009.
7) Winners from nine Asian Tour sanctioned events from the 2008 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2009 WGC-HSBC Champions, which shall be identified as those nine Asian Tour events from the 2007 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2008 HSBC Champions with the highest Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating, having a rating of 40 points or more. If fewer than nine players are eligible via this category (i.e. there is one or more multiple winners in these nine events or a winner is qualified in a higher category or there are insufficient tournaments with the approved rating) additional players from the Asian Tour Order of Merit as of Oct. 26, 2009, in order of their positions, shall fill this category to nine eligible players.
8) Winners from five Japan Golf Tour sanctioned events from the 2008 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2009 WGC-HSBC Champions, which shall be identified as those five Japan Golf Tour events from the 2007 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2008 HSBC Champions with the highest Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating, having a rating of 40 points or more. If fewer than five players are eligible via this category (i.e. there is one or more multiple winners in these five events or a winner is qualified in a higher category or there are insufficient tournaments with the approved rating) additional players from the Japan Golf Tour Order of Merit as of 26 October 2009, in order of their positions, shall fill this category to five eligible players.
9) Winners from five Sunshine Tour sanctioned events from the 2008 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2009 WGC-HSBC Champions, which shall be identified as those five Sunshine Tour events from the 2007 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2008 HSBC Champions with the highest Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating, having a rating of 40 points or more. If fewer than five players are eligible via this category (i.e. there is one or more multiple winners in these five events or a winner is qualified in a higher category or there are insufficient tournaments with the approved rating) additional players from the final 2008 Sunshine Tour Order of Merit, in order of their positions, shall fill this category to five eligible players.
10) Winners from five Australasian Tour sanctioned events from the 2008 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2009 WGC-HSBC Champions, which shall be identified as those five Australasian Tour events from the 2007 HSBC Champions to the event preceding the 2008 HSBC Champions with the highest Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating, having a rating of 40 points or more. If fewer than five players are eligible via this category (i.e. there is one or more multiple winners in these five events or a winner is qualified in a higher category or there are insufficient tournaments with the approved rating) additional players from the final 2008 Australasian Tour Order of Merit, in order of their positions, shall fill this category to five eligible players.
11) Four Chinese players.
12) Top two available players, not otherwise exempt, from the Official World Golf Ranking as of Oct. 26, 2009.
13) If necessary to fill the field to 78 players, additional Tournament Winners from the 2008 HSBC Champions through the event preceding the 2009 WGC-HSBC Champions, which shall be identified as those winners of events from the 2007 HSBC Champions to the 2008 HSBC Champions with the highest Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating, having a rating of 40 points or more, not listed in an above category.
The tournament will be part of the World Golf Championships and will be a 72-hole stroke-play event, with no cut, at the Sheshan International Golf Club, Shanghai, from Nov. 5-8, 2009.
To view the entire field, visit this link.
Enjoy.
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