Contrary to reports appearing over the past 24 hours the Johnnie Walker Classic Golf Tournament will definitely take place at the Westin Ta-Shee resort outside Taipei, Taiwan, on November 11 – 14, 1999.
World No. 1, Tiger Woods, the defending champion will be joined at Ta-Shee by fellow super-stars Ernie Els from South Africa, Fijian Vijay Singh, Nick Faldo from England and American Jim Furyk. These players and the others from the European, Australasian and Asian Tours in the field of 132 will not only be playing in Asia’s premier golf tournament but will be helping to raise money for the earthquake disaster fund through a special initiative conceived by Johnnie Walker entitled TAIWAN KEEP WALKING.
Johnnie Walker and event organisers, IMG, will donate the proceeds from ticket and souvenir sales to the fund. Tiger Woods and the other star players are donating items of equipment and memorabilia which will be auctioned at a special televised auction at the club on Wednesday, November 10. It is hoped that this and other initiatives being put in place by Johnnie Walker will raise $10 million for the fund.
The tournament will begin with the official opening ceremony on Tuesday, November 9, followed by an exclusive Pro-Celebrity event in which Taiwan President Lee Tong-hiu will play with one of the star players. Tiger Woods joins the festivities the following day in the special Pro-Am tournament as a warm up to the event proper which begins on Thursday November 11.
The Johnnie Walker Classic is dedicated to assisting those effected by the horrors of the Chi-Chi earthquake and to showing the World how the vitality and dedication of the people of Taiwan have overcome the dreadful effects of the worst disaster in the island’s history.
