Golf star looks forward to South African contest

Golf star looks forward to South African contest

Rising golf star Danny Lee of New Zealand said he is looking forward to getting his 2010 season off to a strong start in South Africa, the South African Press Association reported on Monday.
The 19-year-old, who charged to a dramatic victory and worldwide headlines in the Johnnie Walker Classic last year, will join a stellar line-up of European and Sunshine Tour winners at the one million U.S. dollar Africa Open, which tees off at East London golf club in South Africa on Thursday.
After his stint at cracking the big time in the U.S., Lee said he is eager to sample the experience of the European Tour, starting in South Africa.
“I’m really looking forward to teeing it up at the Africa Open,” said Lee, who is based in Dallas, Texas.
“This is my first visit to South Africa and from what I hear we can expect a stiff challenge at the East London Golf Club. I can’t think of a better way to start my European Tour season”.
Lee enjoyed a prolific amateur career, becoming the youngest winner of the U.S. Amateur in 2008 at the age of 18 years and one month, earning the number one spot in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and beating the previous record set by Tiger Woods in 1994.
Lee, who was born in South Korea but moved to New Zealand at the age of eight, is pleased with his progress to date, but feels that there is more to come.
“Who knows, it might start for me here in South Africa,” said Lee.
The field will be further boosted by 2009 European Tour champions Nick Dougherty, James Kingston and Richard Sterne, former Ryder Cup stars Darren Clarke, Paul McGinley and Thomas Bjorn, a nine-time winner on the European Tour and local favourite James Kamte, winner of the 2009 Asian Tour International.
Britain’s Dougherty captured the BMW International Open, while Kingston secured his second European Tour title in a playoff triumph against Anders Hansen at the Mercedes-Benz Championship in Cologne and Sterne achieved a triple triumph by winning the JoburgOpen, South African Open and Alfred Dunhill Championship in one year.