‘Golf in The Indian Masters, co-sanctioned by The European Tour, the Asian Tour and the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) and set to be played at the Delhi Golf Club, New Delhi, India, on 5-8 February will not take place on The 2009 European Tour International Schedule.
Mohamed Juma Buamaim, vice chairman and CEO of ‘golf in Dubai’, said, “We have done everything possible to ensure that the second edition of the Indian Masters was played in 2009 but with this tournament we considered that the current economic uncertainty coupled to security concerns made it impossible for us to present the tournament in the manner that we would wish to for world class golfers.
“The inaugural edition of the Indian Masters played earlier this year created quite a buzz in India with the home-grown talent SSP Chowrasia beating a strong field to take the honours. The tournament, the first on The European Tour to be played in India, provided the home players an opportunity to hone their competitive skills in the company of some of the world’s finest players and we are confident that we will achieve this again in 2010.
“We are grateful to the Indian Golf Union, the PGTI and The Asian Tour for extending all their support in putting together the inaugural Indian Masters and we thank them for their patience, support and understanding as we do to the Delhi Golf Club to where we look forward to returning.”
George O’Grady, chief executive of The European Tour, said, “We share with ‘golf in Dubai’ their disappointment that the Indian Masters will not be played in 2009. We understand, however, the economic challenges they face with title sponsorship and we are optimistic that this event which was such a success when first played in 2008 at the superb Delhi Golf Club will return to the schedule in 2010 co-sanctioned by The European Tour, the Asian Tour and the PGTI.”
www.europeantour.com