A host of celebrities and legends from the world of sport and  entertainment industry have already confirmed their participation and support of the event being presented by CGTV Games Ltd and set to considerably boost the coffers of  Leukaemia Research of which Sir Ian is president.

Sir Viv Richards, Nasser Hussain, Steve Cram, Peter Baker, Gordon Brand Jnr, Paul Way, Malcolm MacKenzie, Phil Golding, Mark Davies, Roger Chapman, Steve Richardson, Matt Dawson, Mark Williams, Jimmy Case, Vinny Samways and Ronan Keating, are among some of the big names who have accepted invitations to lead their amateur teams into action, playing 36 holes over two days. 

Desert Springs is the only luxury desert resort in Europe.  Located in the Almanzora region of Almeria, south-east Spain, it has the warmest, driest and sunniest winter climate on the Iberian coast and in Europe.  

Beefy's big event has further been boosted by the news that it is being sponsored by leading coffeee company Java Trading.                                                                                 

Former cricketing legend Botham is a true golfing nut and is a member of several clubs both at home and abroad - he certainly proved too good for TG when he successfully tackled us for the 'TG Tenner' at his beloved Portmarnock Links course near Dublin.

He said: "The commitment of my sporting celebrity friends to give up their time and the players that have entered the event will guarantee, great golf, great fun, great friendship and most of all, the raising of much- needed funds for Leukaemia Research.”

http://www.todaysgolfer.co.uk/Golf/News/searchresults/August-07/Aug7-Beefyclassic/?&R=EPI-12733

This week the world’s top players convene in Akron, Ohio for the WGC – Bridgestone Invitational, which is being hosted by Firestone Country Club for the 8th time. Tiger Woods has tamed this fierce some course like no other, having triumphed here five times. European Tour Weekly looks back at his domination in our preview of this exciting tournament. Anders Hansen moved back into the top fifty in the world and qualified for Firestone when, for the second time in his career, he won the BMW Championship at Wentworth. ETW catches up with the Dane at his holiday home in Denmark as he prepares to travel out to Ohio. 

Our second preview this week comes from The Russian Open Golf Championship at Le Meridien Moscow Country Club. Last year, in what was only his third outing, Alejandro Canizares had a stunning victory in Russia that secured him a two year exemption. From one of Spain’s most prominent golfing families, father Jose Maria played in four Ryder Cup teams, Alejandro beat compatriot Sergio Garcia to become the quickest affiliate member to lift a trophy. The twenty three year old talks to ETW about his speedy route to success.       

Last week Muirfield hosted The Senior Open Championship for the first time. As well as reviewing the action from this historic East Lothian links, we have an extensive interview with Nick Faldo who will be making his seniors debut on the course over which he won two of his three Open Championships. Having turned fifty on July 18th England’s greatest golfer reflects back on his career.  

Together with the latest news this completes another edition of European Tour Weekly.

http://www.europeantour.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7B5A258B31%2D8294%2D4C0E%2DB8B9%2DA796F6009E52%7D&newsid=449335

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http://www.bunkershot.com/2007/viewstory.cfm?ID=4654

Spaniard José Maria Olazábal has enjoyed the exquisite thrill of representing his country and continent in team competitions, but the 41 year old from Fuenterrabia expects to puff out his chest with pride at Mission Hills Golf Club in November.

The course for the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup carries the famous Olazábal signature and the man who helped sculpt the 7,400 yard masterpiece in China, is excited at the prospect of 28 nations assembling from across the globe from November 22-25 to sample his creation.

As well as winning two Masters titles, Olazábal has been on three victorious European Ryder Cup Teams (1987, 1997, 2006), two Alfred Dunhill Cup sides (1999, 2000) under the red and yellow flag of Spain and helped his great friend, Seve Ballesteros, to success in the inaugural Seve Trophy in 2000.

He also partnered José Maria Cañizares to finish runners-up behind Australia at Las Brisas, Marbella, in his native Spain in the 1989 World Cup of Golf, while teaming up with Miguel Angel Jiménez to share seventh place behind the United States in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2000.

Now, as the driving force behind the Olazábal Course at Mission Hills, the man popularly known the world over as ‘Olly’ believes that the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup will rubber stamp China’s Olympic credentials.

He said: “I remember going to Mission Hills in 2002 to check out the course routing and being told that my course and four others had to be finished within one year. I thought: ‘Five courses in a year? No way!’ But it happened, which made me realise why China could handle the task of staging the Olympic Games.

“They brought in about 3000 workers and 600 machines to move the earth and, sure enough, the courses were completed on time. I have to say I was impressed!”

Olazábal believes that his course will deliver a fair but stern challenge to the nations seeking to win the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup. He added: “I hope the players enjoy the course and the challenges facing them. For example, the change in elevation is one of the key factors.

“There are many shots where you find yourself driving off elevated tees or playing approaches to elevated greens. The bunkering is another feature of the course and there is a little bit of water, especially to the left of the 18th which is a little left to right dog-leg with a bale out collection area to the right of the green.

“The fairways are generous and the par threes are all strong holes – not too long but challenging. Look at the Postage Stamp at Royal Troon – par threes don’t need to be over 200 yards to test your skills. A smallish green, a little elevation and some bunkering can make you think!”

Olazábal continued: “I think you are going to see a bunch of birdies. The par threes, as I say, are not too long and the par fives are reachable in two. You can attack the pins and there should be loads of birdie opportunities.”

Spain came agonisingly close to winning the World Cup in 2004, when Sergio Garcia and Jiménez finished one shot behind England’s Paul Casey and Luke Donald in Seville – coincidentally at the Olazábal-designed Real Club de Golf de Sevilla.

However the country has an outstanding record in the World Cup, having won four times between 1976 and 1984. It was Olazábal’s old mentor and friend, Seve Ballesteros, who set the ball rolling in 1976 when he and Manuel Piñero secured Spain’s first title in California while Antonio Garrido partnered Ballesteros to a repeat performance  the following year in the Philippines.

Olazábal revealed: “I was only ten years old at the time and knew Seve and Manuel slightly, but to be honest I didn’t have a clue that Spain had won! I was more interested in learning to play the game and didn’t pay much attention to the news.”

Piñero and José Maria Cañizares triumphed in Mexico in 1982 and the latter teamed up with José Rivero to win in Italy two years later.

Olazábal added: “It’s a great event, fantastic crowds and a lot of fun. You are there to win for your partner and your country.

“I love representing my country. I’ve had some wonderful experiences in The Ryder Cup and playing for Spain. In 1989, I played with Cañizares and the event was cut to 36 holes due to the torrential rain, but that didn’t diminish the element of fun. You can chat away to your partner and enjoy the experience.”

The Spaniard enjoys his visits to China and added: “More and more courses are being built and more people are playing the game. With a population of 1.3 billion, the game is taking off in a big way. It will take time, but I believe that some day a real champion will emerge from China, capable of winning a Major Championship.”

For the 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup the leading 18 available players, each native-born citizens of different countries, from the Official World Golf Ranking on Monday September 3 will qualify. These 18 players will select a player of their choosing from the same country provided each player is ranked in the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking on September 3. Ten countries from the World Qualifying Competitions to be held between September 27-30 will complete the field of 28 nations competing for the first prize of US$1,650,000 from a total prize fund of US$5,000,000.

The 2007 Omega Mission Hills World Cup will launch a new and exciting era in the history of the event first played in 1953 as the Canada Cup. The event is set to continue through 2018, and most probably beyond, at Mission Hills, China, following the signing of an agreement 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 nationals with the inaugural World Cup played in Montreal in 1953 then called the Canada Cup and re-titled The World Cup in 1967.

The International Federation of PGA Tours will, as custodians, oversee the 53rd edition of the event as it unfolds less than one year before the staging in Beijing of the Olympic Games at which OMEGA has a unique role as Official Timekeeper.

http://www.europeantour.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7B5A258B31%2D8294%2D4C0E%2DB8B9%2DA796F6009E52%7D&newsid=448628

In Spain you are sure to find sun and warm temperatures at any time of the year. The great weather, superb visibility, lack of wind and pleasant climate are perfect for playing golf. In addition, Spain has excellent infrastructure and communications: you can easily travel from one region to another and there are numerous golf courses just a few kilometers from the main international airports.

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The Spaniard hits the ball too well, has too much creativity and now even has a putter he's apparently comfortable with. Throw all that together with the sense that Tiger Woods is, one wayward approach shot at a time, moving towards or working through, another swing change/adjustment, and that opens the door even wider.

Having said that, one wonders if nature's course will be blunted by Garcia's penchant for self-pity and immaturity. Sometimes it appears the effervescent 19-year-old who burst on the scene in the 1999 PGA Championship has moved eight years in the opposite direction.

Such was certainly the case last weekend after the British Open. After a sterling three days, Garcia was undone, largely because of an old bugaboo - final-round jitters. A year ago, Garcia was in the final round with Woods and bogeyed three of the first four holes to exit stage left.

This season, he ranks a pedestrian 61st in Sunday scoring on the PGA Tour, his average of 70.90 certainly an acceptable number but not likely one that will lead to hoisting trophies.

So when Garcia shot a 2-over-par 73 on Sunday, losing a three-shot lead, it was actually four at one point early in the round, and eventually falling in a four-hole playoff to Padraig Harrington, it wasn't surprising. If anything, one might have even felt a touch of anguish in watching Garcia's winless streak in the majors reach 36.

But then came Garcia's post-tournament news conference. At the start, when the moderator attempted to offer an olive branch, allowing that the player must be bitterly disappointed, Garcia slapped it away, sarcastically saying, "No, I'm thrilled."

From there, things only grew more bizarre. At one point, Garcia blamed the loss on having to wait too long on the 18th fairway for the group in front of him to clear the green during the final hole of regulation. Later, he groused about his bad luck on the par-3 16th during the playoff, his tee shot hitting the flagstick but careening some 20 feet away. Never mind that if the pin hadn't gotten in the way, the ball may have rolled 30 feet away.

"I should write a book on how not to miss a shot in a playoff and (still) shoot 1-over," Garcia said. "It is the way it is. I guess it's not news in my life."

And, just in case anyone missed the point, Garcia revisited it later, saying his misfortune Sunday was, in essence, just another case of The Man, as in … you know, the one above, trying to keep him down.

"You know what's the saddest thing about it? It's not the first time. It's not the first time, unfortunately. So, I don't know … I'm playing against a lot of guys out there, more than the field."

Granted, after what was certainly a gut-wrenching day, there are bound to be some raw emotions bubbling. But Garcia is the only golfer these things have happened to?

I think not. Perhaps he can have a chat with Charles Howell III, who, two years ago at the Buick Invitational, had a chance to beat Woods, but saw an approach shot hit the pin, and spin backwards off the green and into a pond.

Better still, Garcia should have a sit-down with Woods. The topic wouldn't be tough luck, but rather comportment under fire. The world's top-ranked player has come under fire in many quarters, including this one, for not winning the season's first two majors, the Masters and the U.S. Open, after gaining at least a share of the lead in the final round.

Both times when play was done, Woods offered no excuses, merely allowing that he didn't get the job done. Not long after the latter instance, it was revealed that Woods had played the entire U.S. Open after getting news that his wife Elin had been hospitalized with complications from her pregnancy. One day after the tournament, the Woods welcomed a daughter, Sam Alexis, into the world, an outcome that the new father meant far more than winning any tournament.

Garcia tied for third in last year's PGA. Given the way he played in Scotland, it wouldn't be a reach to consider him one of, if not the favorite, heading into play next month at Southern Hills in Tulsa. Regardless of wherever he falls when the final scores are tallied, the hope is that Garcia deals with it with at least a modicum of grace.

http://www.denverpost.com/arcade/ci_6464840