Asian Tour golf chief vows to win OneAsia battle

Asian Tour boss Kyi Hla Han said Chinese golfers were "suffering" on rival circuit OneAsia and warned that the country may struggle to qualify a player for the keenly awaited 2016 Olympics.Kyi Hla also rejected comments from OneAsia that there was room for two tours in Asia, saying the number of new tournaments had dropped off and sponsors were perplexed by in-fighting between the two circuits.

The Asian Tour added a new event to its schedule on Wednesday with the Handa Singapore Classic making its debut in September.The tournament will offer 400,000 US dollars in prize money with the winner gaining a two-year exemption to the Asian Tour.It is the first time the Asian Tour has co-sanctioned an event with the Singapore PGA."The Handa Singapore Classic is one of three new tournaments already on our calendar this year, with more to come," said the tour's executive chairman Kyi Hla Han.

Golf legend Greg Norman said on Saturday the OneAsia Tour offered a tremendous opportunity to develop golf throughout Asia as it approached its first anniversary.OneAsia was launched last January, bringing together Tours from China, South Korea and Australia with a vision to offer an alternative playing platform to the US PGA and European Tours.The fledgling circuit has its critics, with the influential Japan Golf Tour choosing not to join, while it is at loggerheads with the Asian Tour, which has accused it of stealing tournaments.

South Korean golfers on Tuesday voted to boycott all OneAsia Tour events, including those in China and Australia, in protest at how the tour is being run."The players will boycott every OneAsia event in the Asian region, not just in Korea," Korea Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA) director of operations BJ Song told AFP after a meeting in Seoul."The way OneAsia is run is not appropriate for us."OneAsia chief executive Ben Sellenger confirmed the outcome of the meeting.

Asian golf uncovered a new star in 2010 with teen sensation Noh Seung-Yul winning the Asian Tour Order of Merit race as a battle between rival tours raged on.Noh became the youngest player ever to top the money list after bursting onto the scene by winning the European Tour co-sanctioned Malaysian Open in March, while China?s Liang Wenchong won the OneAsia Tour merit crown."I was happy to win the Malaysian Open this year. It allowed me to compete in Europe, the US and also the three Majors," said the 19-year-old.

The fledgling OneAsia Tour, a rival to the established Asian Tour, on Thursday added the GS Caltex Maekyung Open to its schedule for 2010, with 10 events now confirmed.The tournament will be played at the Namseoul Country Club in Seoul from May 6-9."The GS Caltex Maekyung Open has been an amazing event in Korea for many, many years, and we are delighted to welcome the event to OneAsia," said OneAsia chief executive Ben Sellenger.

South Korean golfers on Thursday performed an abrupt about-turn and abandoned their decision to boycott the fledgling OneAsia Tour."Yes, that is the case. Sanity has prevailed," OneAsia chief executive Ben Sellenger told AFP, without commenting further.South Korea's Yonhap news agency said they agreed to return after being assured that at least 60 spots would be reserved for local players at the three OneAsia Tour events hosted by the country.The Korean Golf Association also promised that no more Korean tournaments would be added to the OneAsia circuit.

The rapidly expanding OneAsia Tour appointed a powerful global media and marketing partner Thursday as chief executive Ben Sellenger said he was confident players would defect from the Asian Tour.OneAsia, whose vision is to offer an alternative playing platform to the US PGA and European Tours, said it had signed a multi-year, multi-million dollar deal with the Singapore-based World Sport Group.WSG, partly-owned by Dentsu Inc, Japan's largest advertising agency, was formerly the Asian Tour's media partner.