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| China aims to challenge for World Cup honortext size    Photo courtesy of www.owc08.com Team China comprises Liang Wen-chong and Zhang Lian-wei. 
Nov. 26, 2008 SHENZHEN, China -- China's Liang Wen-chong and Zhang Lian-wei will wear their heart on their sleeves in the drive for glory at the OMEGA Mission Hills World Cup, which begins on Thursday. The home heroes will tee off the opening round's fourball at Mission Hills Golf Club's Olazabal course alongside defending champion Scotland, represented by Colin Montgomerie and Alastair Forsyth.  When the prestigious 28-nation team event returned to China after a 12-year lapse last year, Liang -- the Asian Tour's No. 1 in 2007 -- and Zhang finished tied for 11th for the country's best finish in the history of the World Cup, but they are determined to improve further. "We have had two days of practice together here and enjoyed a lot of birdies between us. Hopefully, we'll continue to do so when the tournament starts," said Zhang, who is a five-time winner on the Asian Tour. Liang added: "Being paired with Scotland, we will try to be a good host and play well. We are hoping for a good result. I hope the fans will give all their support to our team." Fans had more than support for the Chinese duo, though; they had some suggestions, too. "We got a phone call this morning asking us to use the China flag on our outfits, but we don't have the time to do so now. But I think it's OK, as in our hearts, we want to play well for China. That is important," said Zhang, who is widely credited for raising the profile of golf in China with his exploits on the international scene. Playing as a pair for the third time in the World Cup, Liang said their strong friendship could be a key factor for them to throw in a challenge against the top contenders, which include Sweden's Henrik Stenson and Robert Karlsson, the United States team of Brandt Snedeker and Ben Curtis and Asian nations such as India and Thailand. "We have a good chemistry. I hope we will play our best. I think we can peak as a team," said Liang. India's Jeev Milkha Singh will be looking to put the icing on the cake on his magical season when he makes his debut at the OMEGA Mission Hills World Cup. The 37-year-old has already claimed the Asian Tour's Order of Merit title with three tournaments remaining, and he wants to end his year by conquering the world at Mission Hills. "I think it's great to be representing India, especially when golf is the fastest growing sport in our country. If we can have a good showing here, it could be the best thing for India. The World Cup means a lot, as you're playing for the country. I'm proud to be an Indian," said Singh, who has won three titles this season in Asia and Europe. "I've had a good year, and I'm playing well, and my partner Jyoti (Randhawa) is a strong player. We're looking forward to a good showing." Singh and Randhawa acknowledged that they would make mistakes on the golf course and put the other player under pressure in the foursomes format, which is used for the second and final rounds. "We've spoken to each other about this, and we should take it as though we're playing our own ball. We have to realise we can't hit perfect shots all the time. We're not going to say anything if we miss a putt or hit a bad chip. We'll take it in our stride and move on," said Singh. While honor and pride are at stake, the Indians feel that the key to their success could be relaxes attitudes on the golf course. "We'll joke around, and we're not going to be too serious. But when we need to be serious, we will be. We'll try to have fun and take it easy. We can't get too serious with it, just stay loose," said Singh, who was also Asia's No. 1 in 2006. Randhawa said the pressure was immense when he partnered Gaurav Ghei in last year's OMEGA Mission Hills World Cup. "There is a lot more pressure in this, but it's a good kind of pressure as it keeps you focused," said Randhawa, Asia's No. 1 in 2002. "We'll aim to have some fun out there. Jeev is a funny guy, and I'm sure we'll be laughing a lot out there in between shots."
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