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After a successful International Series Qatar outing at the Doha Golf Club, the Asian Tour is currently headed to New Zealand for the New Zealand Open. As the event readies for kick-off, the Asian circuit has come up with some big news.
According to the tour, Ian Poulter and Henrik Stenson have committed to the upcoming World City Championship in Hong Kong. Former Hong Kong Open winner Poulter and 2016 Open champion Stenson will line up alongside the Asian Tour’s biggest names at the Hong Kong Golf Club in Fanling in a couple of weeks’ time. The LIV golfers will tee off at the event starting March 23 alongside 130 others.
Following the Asian Tour’s announcement, Ian Poulter and Henrik Stenson came out to confirm the same. Speaking about the event, the former Ryder Cup and now LIV golf teammates stated that they were “excited” about it. It is pertinent to note that this will be the players’ first appearance in the city in over three years.
For the unversed, Ian Poulter played and won at the Hong Kong Golf Club back in 2010. The golfer will be counting on the event for a chance to qualify for this year’s 151st Open Championship at Royal Liverpool. Meanwhile, Stenson will be “delighted” just to make his debut in the city. The Swede has already qualified for this year’s last major, owing to his win six years ago.
With many of Asia’s big names already on the event’s roster, it’ll be interesting to see how the LIV golfers perform. The field is also undecided and might lead to more LIV players finding their way onto it in the coming weeks. The tour will head to Hong Kong for the event after its DGC Open outing in Delhi.
Ian Poulter on the ‘vile’ abuse he received for joining LIV Golf
Ian Poulter has been making headlines ever since his defection to LIV Golf. The 47-year-old, currently playing his second season on the Saudi-backed circuit, has faced severe repercussions for joining the rebel side. Poulter recently opened up about the same in Netflix’s golf documentary series Full Swing, and said that the hate he received was “pretty vile.”
Speaking on the series about the reaction he received for joining LIV Golf, Ian Poulter said:
“Pretty vile. Not necessary and I think that, in many respects, the media are to blame for the extent of this abuse.”
It is pertinent to note that the Englishman was subjected to brutal trolling on social media much like his fellow LIV golfers. However, Poulter was among the few who came out to slam the hate and defend his decision. The golfer pointed out that he “gave everything” for the Ryder Cup and he deserved more respect from the fans.
He added:
“And the Ryder Cup, seriously? Do I have to prove that I care? In those eight weeks [of the Ryder Cups in which I have played] I have given everything I’ve got… The pictures show it. Blood, sweat and tears, I wasn't acting. I was a wreck for a few weeks after each one of those matches. I loved every second, but now I’m in the situation where I feel unwelcome. Just because I put my family first?”
It is pertinent to note that Poulter is currently playing the second season of LIV Golf. He is the co-captain of Majesticks GC along with Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood, and Sam Horsfield.
