World's top three together in Singapore

LONDON, England -- The top three ranked women's golfers in the world have been drawn together in the first round of the HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore on Thursday.

Current world number one Lorena Ochoa will play with Sweden's Annika Sorenstam and Karrie Webb of Australia in a mouthwatering, all-star group to mark the inaugural staging of the $2.3 million tournament.

Ochoa, who took over at the top of the rankings from Sorenstam, is teeing up for the first time in 2008 having cemented her position with eight wins on the LPGA Tour last year, including her first major at the British Open.

Sorenstam, determined to regain top spot after an injury-blighted 2007, comes into the tournament off the back of a win in the opening LPGA tournament of the year in Hawaii and finished fourth in the Fields Open last weekend.

Webb, herself a former world number one, started her season with victory in the Australian Masters and is predicting a fascinating opening day.

"Annika, Lorena and I are similar in that we are all very competitive, we expect the best of ourselves and are hard on ourselves - we are perfectionists and we are determined.

"However, we face the game differently. We are all mentally strong, and Lorena is the most confident at the moment and so the best in the world," she said.

Other intriguing match-ups from the draw include five-time winner in 2007, Suzann Pettersen of Norway, teeing off with U.S. Women's Open champion Cristie Kerr and American Natalie Gulbis, while last weekend's Fields Open winner Paula Creamer will play alongside veteran 31-time winner and Hall of Fame star Juli Inkster and 2005 British Open winner Jeong Jang.

LPGA Hall of Famer and 30-time winner Se Ri Pak of Korea has been drawn with KLPGA record-breaking compatriot Ji-Yai Shin, who finished second to Webb in the recent Women's Australian Open, and American Brittany Lincicome, who finished last season ranked 16th in the world.

Singaporean Amelia Yong, a 16-year-old local amateur qualifier, joins Shi Hyun Ahn from Korea and Australia's Lindsey Wright.

The tournament, based on the model of the HSBC Champions tournament for men, won last November by Phil Mickelson, has an invited 78-strong field, with the top 15 in the women's rankings competing. E-mail to a friend