Mission Hills Jack Nicklaus Junior Championship 2008 coming to China

The tournament, August 20-21, on its Nicklaus-designed World Cup Course, will be 36 holes of gross stroke play and is open to juniors of all nationalities under the age of 18. Prizes will be awarded to Top-3 finishers in the Boys and Girls divisions and include complimentary golf lessons at the Mission Hills Golf Academy. The overall winner of the Boys division will also be awarded an exemption into the Mission Hills Asia-Pacific Open Amateur Championship 2009.

"Mission Hills has a proud history of fostering junior golf development in China," says Tenniel Chu, Executive Director, Mission Hills Golf Club. "We've enjoyed a long association with Jack Nicklaus and look forward to growing the Mission Hills Jack Nicklaus Junior Championship into one of Asia's 'can't miss' junior tournaments."

The festivities will also include a give away sponsored by Mission Hills and TaylorMade. As a means of further promoting awareness of golf in China, youth who attend the event will be presented with a 7-iron. For many this will be the first club they've ever owned and will spark a lifelong interest in the game.

Opened to international acclaim in 1994, Jack Nicklaus' World Cup design was the first course at Mission Hills. In the years since, it has hosted more than 30 international tournaments, including the 1995 World Cup and two Dynasty Cups. In April the "Golden Bear" visited Mission Hills and was presented with a "Lifetime Achievement Award" by the China Golf Association for his commitment to developing the sport in China.

Like Nicklaus, Mission Hills continues to do its part to grow golf in the Middle Kingdom. It is annual host of the China Championship and Grand Final for the renowned Faldo Series Asia junior circuit, offers three golf academies, including one each from celebrated instructors David Leadbetter and Cindy Reid, and regularly invites golf dignitaries like Nicklaus, Leadbetter, Nick Faldo and Vijay Singh to conduct skills clinics.

"Golf is a wonderful game," says Chu. "Mission Hills is doing as much as it can to expose as many Chinese, both young and old, as possible. We eagerly anticipate a day in the near future when Chinese players are commonplace on leaderboards at major golf events around the world."

About Mission Hills Golf Club

Stretching across the lush, rolling hills of Shenzhen and Dongguan in southern China, Mission Hills is China's highest rated golf club, and the largest golf club in the world according to the Guinness World RecordsTM. The property is home to 12 resort and championship courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, Ernie Els, Jumbo Ozaki, Vijay Singh, Zhang Lian Wei, Greg Norman, Jose Maria Olazabal, Annika Sorenstam, David Duval, David Leadbetter, Nick Faldo and Pete Dye in collaboration with Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt (Schmidt-Curley Design).

Mission Hills is a full-service, luxury resort, featuring four clubhouses, four spas, two five-star hotels, three golf academies (including schools from world renowned instructors David Leadbetter and Cindy Reid), 51 tennis courts and numerous fine dining establishments serving cuisine from around the world. It has hosted more than 50 international tournaments, including the 1995 World Cup of Golf and the Tiger Woods China Challenge in 2001. The Olazabal Course will host the Omega Mission Hills World Cup through 2018.

Mission Hills' recent awards and accolades include:

IAGTO Golf Resort of the Year (Rest of World Category)

Best Golf Resort in China -- Asian Golf Monthly (2007)

Pete Dye Course named the "Best New Course in Asia" -- Asian Golf Monthly (2007)

Olazabal Course ranked the number two course in China -- Asian Golf Monthly (2007)

Dr. David Chu, Chairman of Mission Hills Group, named one of the "Most Powerful People in Golf" -- Golf Inc. (2007)

Dr. Kenneth Chu, Vice Chairman of Mission Hills Group, named one of golf's "Most Admired Operator's" -- Golf Inc. (2008)

World Cup Course named one of the 10 "most significant and influential courses" of last 20 years -- LINKS Magazine (2008)

Olazabal Course ranked the number one resort course in Asia -- Golfing Magazine (2008)

Getting There: Mission Hills Golf Club is a short drive north of Hong Kong International Airport, www.hongkongairport.com. Flights on most major airlines from most major cities are available into Hong Kong. From the airport, Mission Hills transports golfers in luxury shuttles across the border to the resort hotel.

For more information about Mission Hills Golf Club, visit www.missionhillsgroup.com.