Published July 17, 2008 on February 14, 2019

Pakistan Open Makes a Return to the Asian Circuit in March

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The storied RAYA Pakistan Open will make a welcome return to the Asian golf circuit from March 27 – 30, 2019 following a 10-year hiatus.

The country’s National championship, which was inaugurated in 1967, will be held for the first time on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) at the highly-acclaimed Defence Raya Golf and Country Club, offering a prize fund of US$80,000.

Asian Tour Chief Operating Officer Cho Minn Thant said: “We are delighted to announce the return of the Pakistan Open for the first time since 2009. We are excited to return to the Defence Raya Golf and Country Club which successfully made its international debut hosting with us in 2017. We are confident the championship course will be in superb condition once again when we return next month.

“I would also like to thank the Pakistan Golf Federation for its outstanding support of the game. The tournament’s return is a massive step forward and we hope to inspire a new generation of golfers in Pakistan as we continue to strengthen the game across Asia,” Cho added.

Lieutenant General Mian Muhammad Hilal Hussain (Retired), President of the Pakistan Golf Federation (PGF) said: “We are pleased to sanction our National Open with the ADT next month. The PGF works closely with the Asian Tour and we strive to further grow the stature and prestige of the Pakistan Open, which plays a major role in developing the game in our country.”

The ADT, launched in 2010 as a gateway to the premier Asian Tour, first sanctioned an event in Pakistan in 2017, where Thailand’s Poosit Supupramai secured his breakthrough win on the same venue located in the cosmopolitan city of Lahore.

In 2018, the Asian Tour marked its return to Pakistan by staging an event in Karachi where Tirawat Kaewsiribandit of Thailand sealed his maiden victory.

The Pakistan Open was held previously on the premier Asian Tour where England’s Chris Rodgers and Malaysia’s Airil Rizman claimed their respective maiden wins in 2006 and 2007. The last edition was staged on the domestic circuit in 2009.

The RAYA Pakistan Open, jointly sanctioned by the Pakistan Golf Federation (PGF) and the ADT, will feature an international field of 144 players, with 50 players from the ADT, 80 players from the PGF, nine invites and five amateurs.

With the addition of the RAYA Pakistan Open on the 2019 ADT schedule, players will have another opportunity to boost their rankings on the Order of Merit and play their way onto the Asian Tour.

The leading seven players on the final ADT Order of Merit will earn playing rights on the premier Asian Tour for the 2020 season.

All ADT events are afforded with Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points. The winner of each tournament receives a minimum of six OWGR points while the top-six players and ties earn points on a sliding scale.