Sabbatini, Campbell added to UBS Hong Kong Open

text size

HONG KONG -- PGA TOUR regular Rory Sabbatini and former U.S. Open champion Michael Campbell will be aiming to add the UBS Hong Kong Open titles to their impressive CVs this month.

Sabbatini

The illustrious duo will be joined in the $2.5 million showpiece by European Tour hotshot Graeme McDowell and Indian star Jeev Milkha Singh.

The 50th edition of the UBS Hong Kong Open will be staged at the Hong Kong Golf Club in Fanling from Nov. 20-23.

Sabbatini -- a four-time winner on the PGA TOUR -- will be making his Hong Kong debut.

"I'm really looking forward to playing in my first UBS Hong Kong Open," said the South African.

Campbell

"The guys on the PGA TOUR who've played at Fanling tell me it's a great course and a fantastic event, and the fact that it's the 50th tournament will make it even more special. I know as well that Hong Kong is a great city, so it promises to be a memorable trip."

Sabbatini will be visiting Hong Kong after a solid season that saw him register three top-10 finishes on the PGA TOUR, including second place in the Sony Open in Hawaii.

"I understand that in the past 49 years, David Frost has been the only South African to win the Hong Kong Open, although others have been close, so it would be nice if I could become the second. I'll certainly be giving it my best shot," Campbell said.

Campbell joined golf's elite as a major champion when he won the 2005 U.S. Open after holding off the challenge of world No. 1 Tiger Woods.

He was the first New Zealander to win a major since Bob Charles in 1963, prompting widespread celebrations in his homeland. He followed up by winning the World Match Play Championship.

Campbell has made two previous appearances in the Hong Kong Open, including a top-10 finish in 2003.

McDowell made an impact in his first UBS Hong Kong Open last year when he finished sixth.

It was the start of a glorious campaign for the Northern Irishman as he captured two European Tour titles and made his Ryder Cup debut on his way to a fifth-place finish in the Order of Merit.

"It was my first time playing the UBS Hong Kong Open last year and I had a fantastic week -- four good rounds and a top-10 finish," said McDowell.

"The course is beautiful and the fans were tremendous, so I have some fond memories and I'm looking forward to going back.

"The UBS Hong Kong Open came at the start of a great season for me and hopefully that will prove the case this time as well."

The globe-trotting Jeev has won three times on the European Tour, including the 2008 Austrian Open, has a victory in Japan to his name this year and currently lies second on the Asian Tour's Order of Merit.

The quartet will join a strong UBS Hong Kong Open line-up that includes defending champion Miguel Angel Jiménez and former winners Colin Montgomerie, José María Olazábal and the legendary Bernhard Langer.

Another player in the Fanling field will be six-time major winner Nick Faldo.