Korea, Philippines and Italy qualify for Omega Mission Hills World Cup

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SHENZHEN, China -- Mission Hills Golf Club -- the world's largest collection of premier golf courses with 12 layouts designed by many of the greatest golfers and golf course architects from five continents -- announces Korea, the Philippines and Italy have qualified for the 2008 Omega Mission Hills World Cup, held November 27-30 on the Olazabal Course.

The Korean team of Bae Sang-moon and Kim Hyung-tae won the Fortis International Challenge with a 20-under-par 268 total at Malaysia's Kota Permai Golf & Country Club. The Filipino team of Angelo Que and Mars Pucay finished three strokes back at 271, while the fraternal tandem of Francesco and Edoardo Molinari of Italy finished third at 14-under 274. The six have now earned the right to battle for the honor of their respective countries at Mission Hills in November.

"We're excited to welcome these nations to Mission Hills," says Tenniel Chu, Executive Director, Mission Hills Golf Club. "Korea is an established power on the international golf scene, while the Philippines and Italy show great promise. The Omega Mission Hills World Cup will afford each a unique platform to measure precisely where they stand against the world's best."

Korea, the Philippines and Italy join host nation China and the 18 exempt teams announced last week. They are:Australia (Richard Green, Brendan Jones), Chile (Felipe Aquilar, Mark Tullo), Denmark (Soren Hansen, Anders Hansen), England (Ian Poulter, Ross Fisher), France (Gregory Havret, Gregory Bourdy), Germany (Martin Kaymer, Alex Cejka), India (Jeev M. Singh, Jyoti Randhawa), Ireland (Graeme McDowell, Paul McGinley), Japan (Ryuji Imada, Toru Taniguchi), New Zealand (Mark Brown, David Small), Scotland (Alastair Forysth, Colin Montgomerie), South Africa (Rory Sabbatini, Richard Sterne), Spain (Miguel Angel Jimenez, Pablo Larrazabal), Sweden (Henrik Stenson, Robert Karlsson), Taiwan (Wen-Tang Lin, Wen-Teh Lu), Thailand (Prayad Marksaeng, Thongchai Jaidee), United States (TBD), Wales (Bradley Dredge, Richard Johnson).

Qualifiers in Poland (September 25-28) and Venezuela (October 7-10) will be held to complete the field. Exempt teams were determined by the Official World Golf Rankings.