European Ryder Cup heroes – Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson, Francesco Molinari, Thorbjorn Olesen, Graeme McDowell, the six-time European Tour winner Peter Hanson and the defending champion Nicolas Colsaerts were all in the stars list of 2013 Volvo World Match Play Championship, played at the breathtaking Thracian Cliffs Course in Bulgaria from the 16th to the 19th May, 2013.
The elite Volvo World Match Play Championship, celebrated its 50th Anniversary in 2013 at Thracian Cliffs, gathered 24 of the world’s best players to compete for this prestigious title via a merit-based qualification process designed to gather the highest quality international field. Â
The players competed for the prize fund of €3,000,000 (€250,000 more than 2012) with the eventual winner taking home a €800,000 first prize.
The Championship, owned by IMG and promoted together with Volvo, generated worldwide media coverage, with approximately 1,600 hours of golf broadcast to half a billion households, has evolved considerably since moving from Wentworth in 2009, successfully securing a world-class field by qualification on merit, increasing the field to 24 players and revising the format
Graeme McDowell, who won a tightly contested final match against Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee to move to Number Seven in the 2013 Official World Golf Ranking, said:”It has been a fantastic week and I have enjoyed it very much. Everyone has been so welcoming and I would like to thank everyone here at Thracian Cliffs, the Bulgarian Golf Association and the Bulgarian Government.
“Bulgaria is obviously a fairly new golfing country but hopefully we have helped start something special in this beautiful land and we can see a lot more people taking up the game here and really enjoying the sport.”
Semi finalist Thomas Aiken from South Africa added:
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“I thought it was fantastic. It’s my first time here, and I would never have thought that Bulgaria would be this beautiful. I think it’s a great destination for European holiday makers. I mean, when you compare it to countries like Spain, I think it’s got the same if not more to offer and less people.
It’s a nice, quiet holiday to get away with the family, fantastic golf holiday here. It looks like they have got great beaches so why wouldn’t you come.
Per Ericsson, President of Volvo Event Management commented:
“At Volvo, we take great pride in being innovative, original and forward thinking and we take enormous satisfaction that we are the first to bring a full European Tour event to Bulgaria with our partners IMG.
Thracian Cliffs provided a wonderful stage for this great tournament and everything about the venue was wonderfully received by the players and we feel our 130th professional golf tournament has been a great triumph.”
Guy Kinnings, Global Managing Director, IMG Golf, the tournament’s co-promoters added :
“It has been a fantastic week of golf as we celebrated 50 years since the first World Match Play Championship. We are delighted to play a part in highlighting everything that Bulgaria, and specifically, Thracian Cliffs, has to offer.
We congratulate Volvo on a wonderful 130th event and also thank the Bulgarian Government, the Bulgarian Golf Association and Thracian Cliffs for all the hard work they have put in to make this event such a tremendous success.”
Keith Waters, Chief Operating Officer of The European Tour, said:
“The European Tour would like to congratulate the Bulgarian Government, Volvo, the Bulgarian Golf Association, Thracian Cliffs and IMG for the hugely successful staging of the first European Tour event in Bulgaria at the Volvo World Match Play Championship. We are sure Graeme McDowell’s victory will go some way to putting Bulgaria on the golfing map, and we hope to return to this outstanding golfing destination in the near future.”
Krassimir Guergov, Chairman of the Bulgarian Golf Association, commented:
“We would like to thank the players for all their kind words and also to thank Volvo, IMG and the European Tour for giving us the opportunity to show off our golfing credentials. We have had a wonderful experience hosting the 48th Volvo World Match Play Championship at Thracian Cliffs and would like to congratulate our winner, Graeme McDowell.”
About Volvo in Golf In 1988, Volvo changed the face and fortunes of the European Tour and has been a pioneer in golf for many years, successfully using its high-profile events portfolio to position the premium brand and create sustainable business partnerships with clients passionate about the sport. Thanks to effective media exposure, millions around the world have seen the renowned blue brand on the tees, greens and fairways of the world.
European Tour events: Volvo Golf Champions a champions only tournament Volvo China Open – the national open golf championship of China Volvo World Match Play Championship – professional golf’s most enduring match play event.
Bulgaria received another prestigious award from the World Golf Industry. Thracian Cliffs, the leading golf course in Bulgaria, accepted the award “Golf
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