Holf circuit tournaments offer attractive cash prizes

JAKARTA (JP): Handsome cash prizes totaling about Rp 250 million are on offer in a golf circuit to be staged on four courses around the greater Jakarta area starting next week.

Two of the four events which offer minimum cash prizes of US$40,000 are eligible for ASEAN golfers which are included in the ASEAN mini tour, Indonesia Golf Association secretary-general Taufik Aziz said yesterday.

This year's circuit will tee-off at the par-72 Pondok Cabe Golf and Country Club on July 11 with Rp 40 million ($18,500) in cash prizes being on offer. From there the circuit moves to neighboring layout Pangkalan Jati from July 18 to 21, also with Rp 40 million in cash prizes up for grabs.

Another event in the circuit included in the ASEAN mini tour is the third leg in the circuit to be contested at the par-72 Matoa Golf Club, a newly established golf link at the southern outskirt of the capital, from July 25 to July 28.

Competitors at the Matoa tournament will be vying for the $40,000 cash prizes.

The Pondok Indah posh layout will host the fourth and the final leg of the circuit, officially called the Jakarta Open on Aug. 2 to 5.

Renowned for being the host of the 1983 World Cup golf championship, the par-72 layout in South Jakarta, will offer total cash prizes of $50,000 the biggest amount in the circuit.

Trophy

Meanwhile, at the luxurious par-72 Riverside course near Bogor, a huge field of more than 400 men and women golfers took part in the 1995 Mercedes Benz Trophy from July 6 to 7.

The golf link designed by world top player Australian Greg Norman was chosen by PT Star Motor Indonesia, the sole distributor of the luxurious Mercedes Benz cars, which organized the annual event.

The competitors, most of them owners of upscale cars and dealers, are vying for a few places for the Asian level championship to be staged at Bumi Serpong Damai course next month, a committee official said.

The participating golfers coming from Balikpapan, Banjarmasin, Bandung, Surabaya, Medan and Jakarta, are split into four categories, Group A (handicap 0-9), Group B (10-15), Group C 16- 20) and Group D (21-24).

"Through such a tournament the relationships among Mercedes- Benz owners and the distributor hopefully can be well maintained," Marketing Deputy Director Wenda Wonoseputro said. (rsl)