Asian tour boosted by China events

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BEIJING, China -- The Asian tour added another golf tournament in China to its schedule on Tuesday, acknowledging the growth of professional golf in the booming nation.

Beijing will host the Pine Valley Open next month, meaning the country is now home to five Asian tour events.

The latest addition will offer a lucrative $500,000 in prize money and will take place between April 26-29, following on from the BMW Asian Open and the Volvo China Open in a three-week 'swing'.

"The launch of the Pine Valley Beijing Open is another huge boost for the game in Asia," said the Asian Tour's executive chairman Kyi Hla Han.

"China continues to pave the way with new and exciting tournaments emerging in the mainland."

Chinese stars Zhang Lian-wei and Liang Wen-chong, who recently triumphed in the Singapore Masters and donated his prize money to the development of golf in China, will lead the local challenge.

"The growing popularity of golf in China has been evident in recent years and on behalf of the China Golf Association, we are delighted to announce the launch of the Pine Valley Beijing Open," said China Golf Association vice president Zhang Xiaoning.

"With the strengthening of ties with the Asian Tour, we believe that this tournament has the potential to become one of Beijing's influential events."

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