Rose Set for Wentworth Challenge

England’s Justin Rose will join a star-studded field for this month’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Club in Surrey, from May 24-27.

It will be one of the strongest tournaments on the European Tour this season with South Africans Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, Fijian Vijay Singh, Britons Paul Casey and Luke Donald and Henrik Stenson confirming their participation in the event.

Rose, who came close to winning the US Masters last month at Augusta, is a regular on the PGA Tour. He is returning to Britain to receive back treatment and the timing is perfect to compete in the Wentworth Club tournament.

Rose, who won the European Tour’s MasterCard Masters in Australia this season, said on the tour’s website:

“I am feeling very positive that my back injury will continue to improve at the same rate so that I am able to play. I was delighted to win again on the European Tour this season and like everyone else, nothing would give me greater pleasure than to win the BMW PGA Championship as all the players know this is our flagship event.”

Meanwhile, it is a big week on the PGA Tour with players gearing up for The Players Championship at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. And the rain that threatened to cause havoc is actually helping the course managers prove that their $8 million revamp, which included a hi-tech drainage system, was worth the effort.

Course superintendent Fred Klauk said:

“The rain hasn’t affected the playability of the golf course at all. In fact, given our forecast, I’m trying to retain the moisture that we’ve had so that the greens do not get too firm. The half-inch of rain we had Sunday didn’t really change the firmness of the course. Water is just passing right through.”


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