PRESS RELEASE

GOOSEN TARGETS VICTORY AT ISKANDAR JOHOR OPEN

Johor Bahru, Malaysia (Wednesday, October 29 2008): Two-time Major winner Retief Goosen is aiming for victory at the Iskandar Johor Open to salvage what he has labelled as a 'bad' season.

The South African star headlines the US$500,000 Asian Tour event at Royal Johor Country Club starting on Thursday with every intention of snatching the trophy from title holder Artemio Murakami of the Philippines.

Two-time Asian number one Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand, Malaysia's rising star Ben Leong, Niclas Fasth of Sweden and last week's Macau Open champion David Gleeson of Australia are amongst the leading names who will also be competing in the second edition of the Iskandar Johor Open.

"I'm looking forward to the week. I’ve been working pretty hard over the last five months with my fitness and everything. I feel like it's starting to come together and hopefully I can get on a roll this week," said Goosen, winner of the US Open in 2001 and 2004.

Once a regular fixture in the world's top-10 rankings, Goosen has slipped out of the top echelon over the past 12 months but is optimistic of turning his fortunes around by the time he hits his 40th birthday next February.

"It's been pretty bad," the 47th-ranked Goosen said of his year. "I had a couple of good tournaments but it's been very inconsistent. My putting has not been up to standard for the past two years and in this game, if you can make putts you’ll make a score. I’ve been working pretty hard in all parts of my game and hopefully things can improve.

"I'm still a youngster. Vijay (Singh) started playing his best golf when he was 40 and I can't wait till I turn 40 next year. Hopefully it'll kickstart my game. I know I've got another five good years of golf left."

Murakami is relishing a return to the scene of his maiden Asian Tour victory but knows he must be on top of his game to ward off the combined challenges from Goosen and Asia's best players.

The big-hitting Filipino, who triumphed by one shot last year, took last week off to prepare for the Iskandar Johor Open. "It's exciting to come back to Johor. However, there are so many top players this week, so it will be a real test for me," said Murakami, who finished tied 21st, equal 10th and tied 19th in his last three events.

He remembers last year's victory clearly but the notorious greens at the Royal Johor still bring a shiver to his spine. "The pin positions were very tricky last year. There are many tough pins out there," said Artemio, currently 44th on the Order of Merit.

Thongchai, a two-time winner of the Malaysian Open, returns to what he calls his second home and while he will be eyeing a ninth career Asian Tour victory, the former Thai soldier is battling jetlag after flying in from Spain on Monday.

"I slept for only two hours last night. I'll need to adjust again to the conditions here as I'm struggling with jetlag," said Thongchai, who finished second behind Malaysia’s Ben Leong in his last visit to Malaysia at the Worldwide Selangor Masters in August.

Like Goosen, Thongchai lamented about his putting and knows he needs to hit the right lines at Royal Johor's tricky putting surfaces. "In my last two events, I've hit like 16 and 17 greens consistently but took an average of 34 putts. It’s not been good," he said.

Defeating Thongchai for his maiden Asian Tour victory seems like a long time ago for Malaysia's rising star Leong. The young Malaysia has not finished better than 35th place in six events after his career breakthrough.

"I always play to win. But this game is so unpredictable. The game has been pretty average since the win. The swing feels a bit weak at the moment and on these small greens, it's so easy to drop shots and harder to get the stroke back," said Leong.

"Par on every hole will be a good score this week," added the 22-year-old Malaysian, who will play the opening two rounds alongside Thongchai and Goosen.

Admission to the Iskandar Johor Open is free. For further information, please visit www.iskandarjohoropen.com

About the Asian Tour

As the official sanctioning body for professional golf in Asia, the Asian Tour leads the development of golf across the region, enhancing the careers of its members while maintaining a commitment to the integrity of the game. The Asian Tour, through its membership of the International Federation of PGA Tours, is the only recognised pan-Asian professional golf tour in Asia. This unique feature positions the Asian Tour at the pinnacle of professional golf in Asia; providing its events with Official World Ranking status. Tour Partners include Carlsberg (Official Beer), ESPN Star Sports (Official Regional TV Broadcaster), Pin High (Official Apparel Partner), Ricoh (Official Office Solutions Provider), Sofitel (Official Hotel), TIME and FORTUNE (Corporate Partner) and Srixon (Official Ball). Sentosa, Singapore’s premier island resort getaway, is the Home of the Asian Tour.

For further information, please contact Asian Tour’s Chuah Choo Chiang at the Iskandar Johor Open press centre +607 2238941. Also visit www.asiantour.com for Live Scoring.





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