Golf: OneAsia Tour axes China event

The OneAsia Tour has axed this year’s inaugural Shandong Gold Cup tournament in China due to scheduling issues, organisers said yesterday.
The event was due to be the ninth stop on the fledgling tour’s 11-tournament schedule with golfers teeing off in the eastern Chinese province from October 21-24 with one million dollars in prize money at stake.
“There have been some specific concerns raised about scheduling and timing of the Shandong Gold Cup from a local government and venue perspective,” the tour said in an email to AFP.
“As we would like to ensure the quality of OneAsia events, and work with our sponsors to enhance these events, we have decided to postpone the tournament till further notice.
“We will continue to focus on ensuring that our upcoming events build on the success of last year, and continue to liaise with the sponsor on arrangements of the event for the future.”
The tour hosted five events in its maiden season last year, with 10 now on this year’s schedule, compared with 25 by the rival Asian Tour.
OneAsia, whose vision is to offer an alternative playing platform to the US PGA and European Tours, was established in 2009 by bringing together tours from China, South Korea and Australia.
It has grand visions but has so far failed to get the influential Japan Golf Tour on board and is at loggerheads with the established Asian Tour, which has accused it of stealing its tournaments.