PGA Europeantour.com The Estonian Golf and Country Club will have the honour of hosting the 2009 Omega Mission Hills World Cup European Qualifier from September 24 – 27.
Two-man teams from around the globe are expected to battle it out for the three qualifying spots available and the chance to take part in the Omega Mission Hills World Cup at Mission Hills, China from November 26 – 29.
The European Tour will have responsibility for overseeing the European qualifying tournament and will work closely with the both staff and members of the Estonian Golf and Country Club to deliver a memorable Estonian experience for competing players.
Keith Waters, Director of International Policy for The European Tour, said: “Staging the Omega Mission Hills World Cup European Qualifier in Estonia is very much in keeping with the spirit upon which the World Cup was founded. Bringing a truly international event such as this to an emerging golf market such as Estonia can only serve to further accelerate the growth of the game in this country and also in this part of Europe.”
The Estonian Golf and Country Club, which opened in 2005, is one of the finest golf courses in Eastern Europe and one of only eight venues to come under auspices of European Tour Courses .
Mait Schmidt, President of Estonian Golf and Country Club, said: “It is a great honour for Estonian Golf and Country Club to be the host venue of the Omega Mission Hills World Cup European Qualifier and to be able to showcase golf in Estonia. Golf is growing rapidly in Estonia and we look forward to hosting the best players from Europe and around the Globe as they attempt to qualify for a world class event such as the Omega Mission Hills World Cup.”
Locals say that when God created the coastal land of the Estonian Golf & Country Club, he must have intended it to be a golf course as it winds its way so harmoniously along the Baltic Coast and the Jägala River delta. The club boasts not only the beautiful 18-hole Sea Course with its spectacular sea views and signature par four 13th, but also the historic nine-hole Stone Course, which meanders through impressive rock formations and gigantic stones from the ice age.
Situated just half an hour from the centre of Estonia’s capital city Tallinn, and only a 15 minute drive from Tallinn International Airport, the club is ideally situated and can be accessed easily from all major cities in Europe.
The format for the first and third rounds of the Omega Mission Hills World Cup European Qualifier will be fourball (betterball), with foursomes (alternate shot) to be used in the second and final rounds. The Official World Golf Rankings will determine the first 18 nations to qualify for the Omega Mission Hills World Cup itself and the European Qualifier will join the Asian and South American Qualifiers to determine the balance of the field. The leading three teams from each Qualifier will earn a place in the Omega Mission Hills World Cup.
The Omega Mission Hills World Cup was first played in 1953 as the Canada Cup. The event is set to continue through 2018, and most probably beyond, at Mission Hills following the signing of an agreement in 2007 which brought the prestige watch manufacturer Omega together with the Club which introduced the game of golf to China by first hosting the World Cup in 1995.
John Jay Hopkins, the noted Canadian industrialist, brought to reality a dream that golf could promote goodwill between nations with the inaugural World Cup played in Montreal in 1953 then called the Canada Cup and re-titled The World Cup in 1967.
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