Scott Hend Confirms for Venetian Macao Open Defence

The prestigious tournament is now the richest full-field Asian Tour event.

"I am ready to defend my title," Hend said

MACAO, 21 June 2016, (HK Golfer News Wire) - Two-time champion Scott Hend has announced his intention to return to Macao and defend his Venetian Macao Open title, which will once again be held at the picturesque Macau Golf & Country Club. Scheduled for 13 - 16 October 2016, the lucrative event will see its total prize fund reach an all-time high of US$1.1m, a fourth consecutive year-on-year increase.

Inaugurated in 1998, The Venetian Macao became title sponsor of the tournament in 2012 and, since then, has seen it develop into one of the most prestigious professional golf tournaments in the region and the highest purse for a full-field Asian Tour event this year. The 144-player championship will continue to be jointly organised by Sports Bureau of Macao SAR Government (MSB) and the Golf Association of Macau. It is sanctioned by both the Asian Tour and the Golf Association of Macau, and promoted by IMG.

Last year Hend held off the challenge of his great Asian Tour rival Anirban Lahiri as well as Chiragh Kumar to claim a three-stroke win, becoming only the second player after Chinese great Zhang Lian-wei to win the tournament twice (2013 & 2015). Fresh off the back of his second tour win this year in the Queen’s Cup in Thailand, the married father-of-two has had another strong year on tour that has also seen him clinch the True Thailand Classic presented by Chang and bag another three top-10 finishes.

Speaking about his return to the Venetian Macao Open, the 42-year-old Australian commented: “The Venetian Macao Open is one of my favourite stops on the Asian Tour and a tournament that I always seem to play my best. The field there is always tough and I am stoked to have come away with two victories and one runner-up finish over the last three years.

“The course itself won’t be any different, but I know the players around me will keep getting better, so I too will need to raise my game to make sure I am ready to defend my title. Hopefully I can emulate Zhang Lian-wei and defend a Venetian Macao Open title,” Hend added.