By Rahul Banerji
Europe’s Ryder Cup winning captain Thomas Bjorn and two members of his team, Justin Rose and Thorbjorn Olesen, will be part of the six-member Hero Challenge at London’s Canary Wharf on Tuesday.
The one-hole shootout is a prelude to the Sky Sports British Masters at Walton Heath Golf Club and hosted by Rose, the world number two.
The six will hit off a floating tee onto a purpose-built green, surrounded by London’s tallest buildings.
Joining Bjorn, Olesen and Rose will be Englishmen Andrew “Beef” Johnston and Indian Open winner Matt Wallace as well as Irish star Paul Dunne.
In July Matt Kuchar won the last Hero Challenge at Edinburgh Castle on the eve of the Scottish Open.
Bjorn, who led Europe to a stunning 17½-10½ victory in Paris last week, returns as a player for the British Masters and will make his debut at the Hero Challenge.
Incredible week
“The last week has been an incredible one, and a busy one, after the Ryder Cup but I’ve enjoyed every minute of it,” said Bjorn.
“I’m now looking forward to playing again and the Hero Challenge will be a nice way to ease into the week before getting back to competing at the British Masters.
“I’m sure some of that enthusiasm and excitement will feed into the Hero Challenge atmosphere, and I hope that we’ll be able to put on a show for the fans.”
Olesen, 28, contributed one point to Team Europe’s winning tally following his 5&4 Sunday Singles victory over Jordan Spieth.
This will be the third successive season in which the British Masters will be preceded by the Hero Challenge.
The event made its debut in 2016 at The Grove, won by Alex Levy, before 2017 tournament host Lee Westwood emerged victorious at Close House last year.
Past winners
Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters, backed a further three editions in 2017, at the Scottish Open, the British Masters and the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.
They were won by American Patrick Reed, Englishman Lee Westwood and China’s Haotong Li respectively.
Said event sponsor Pawan Munjal, “The Hero Challenge has grown to be an integral part of the European Tour in a short span of time.
“The innovative contest made its debut on this prestigious platform in 2016 and since then it has steadily attracted more followers and audiences to the sport.
“With the live telecast this season in India, the Hero Challenge will appeal to a new set of young fans in our country as well.”