Three-time Major winner Padraig Harrington, newly-appointed Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley and Englishman Chris Wood, the defending champion, will light up the fairways at OneAsia’s U.S. $1 million Thailand Open next month.

Joining the European trio is Japanese legend Shingo Katayama and the rising star of Korean golf Kim Kyung-tae. 

With the Singha Corporation on board as premier sponsor, the prestigious event will return to Thana City Golf & Sport Club for the first time since 1998, with local fans hoping a home-grown player can win the national title for the first time in nearly a decade.

The March 14 to 17 tournament is the opening event of the OneAsia season, and in a landmark development is joint-sanctioned with the Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO) for the first time.

“There is no question that this year’s Thailand Open features one of its strongest-ever fields,” said Rungsrid Luxitanonda on behalf of the Thailand Golf Association (TGA) and Singha Corporation.

“This will be the first time Padraig Harrington will play in our national Open and we are thrilled that he has taken time out of his busy schedule to join our event.

“Our national Open has made remarkable progress since it returned to the golf calendar in 2009 after a brief hiatus. The tournament has re-emerged as one of the region’s premier national Opens — particularly with it now being joint sanctioned with the JGTO.”

Singha’s sponsorship of many of the country’s professionals has been one of the main reasons why Thai players have been able to perform so well on the international stage, and their support of golf tournaments at all levels has been unrivalled.

“Singha Corporation are delighted to be involved with the Thailand Open once again this year,” said Rungsrid. “We are renowned for our strong support of golf in Thailand and so to be able to be premier sponsor of our national Open gives us a sense of completion.”