"The young Asian players are absolutely fearless and that is why they win," said Pettersen, a five time winner on the LPGA Tour. "Until recently things were being dominated by a few more experienced players and suddenly these girls have come in and shaken up the mix at the top of women's golf. That is a very positive and exciting influence for the sport and it's sure keeping us on our toes!"

Hall-of-Famer Juli Inkster tees off on the 11th hole during last year's inaugural HSBC Women's Champions. Many believe she is overdue a victory and this could be her week. [Getty Images for HSBC]

The world's local bank has taken steps to make sure the HSBC Women's Champions leaves a legacy by energising the development of young golfers in the region. HSBC have once again used a sponsor's invite to ensure that the top golfer from the South East Asian region gets to play. This year it's Thailand's Russy Gulyanamitta who takes that place and who has also promised to mentor the winner of the local qualifying tournament; 15-year-old Joey Poh. Joey is currently a student of the HSBC Youth Golf Excellence Programme, a grassroots sponsorship that supports the top to bottom approach of HSBC's sponsorship strategy.

"I hope as many people as possible will come and watch the golf live at Tanah Merah, especially to cheer on Joey," said Guy Harvey-Samuel, the CEO of HSBC Singapore. "With all the young Asian golf talent that has emerged in the past year, this year's HSBC Women's Champions promises to be even more thrilling and inspiring: A true Champions Showdown!" Robbie Henchman, Senior Vice President, Director of Golf Asia Pacific at IMG, the event promoters, added "The HSBC Champions and Women's Champions tournaments really are the benchmark for golf in Asia. This is only the second edition of the HSBC Women's Champions so we are delighted that the world's best players have embraced the event so wholeheartedly. Every available winner from the 2008 LPGA season and every major winner over the past three years has taken up their invitation to play here in Singapore. The unprecedented strength and depth of the field reflects just how firmly established this tournament already is on the world's golfing calendar."

The line-up for the inaugural HSBC Women's Champions collectively boasts 492 tournament wins and 32 Major titles, including all but one of the major winners from the past three years (2006 Weetabix Women's British Open winner Sherri Steinhauer is only absent because she is injured), every LPGA tournament winner from 2008 and the money list champions from all over the world.

One of the LPGA's hottest properties - Paula Creamer will be looking to improve on her third place finish at last year's HSBC Women's Champions. [Scott Halleran/Getty Images]

 

(HSBC Golf March 5, 2009)