Bloomfield hunts fourth straight title

Adrian Frater, News Editor

Western Bureau:

A whopping US$70,000 will be at stake when the professional side of the 47th LIME Jamaica Open Golf Tournament tees off at the Half Moon Golf Course in Montego Bay this morning, with some 109 participants, inclusive of defending champion Johnny Bloomfield.

"We are expecting a very good tournament ... we have players from 12 different countries and they are rearing to go," said Wayne Chai Chong, the president of the Jamaica Golf Association. "The line-up includes 62 professionals and 47 amateurs ... so this is definitely shaping up to be one of the best tournaments we have had in recent years."

Several of today's contestants were involved in a warm-up pro-am tournament yesterday, which offered them an opportunity to get a feel of the course and the playing conditions they are likely to encounter over the next three days.

While the South Korean Charlie Wi and his PGA counterpart, the New Zealander Grant Waite, are the highest ranked players in the field, all eyes will probably be on Jamaica's Bloomfield, who created history last year by becoming the first player to win three consecutive LIME Jamaica Open titles.

History books

In fact, Bloomfield, who is based in Florida, could write himself deeper in the history books, as another win when the tournament ends on Saturday will see him becoming the tournament's 'winningest' player. Like Bloomfield, Seymour Rose and Mike Higuera have also won the title three times, albeit not consecutively.

The tournament will also have a novelty component, as former West Indies cricket captain Brian Lara, who is one of the world's premier sporting personalities, is listed among the participants.

"Brian (Lara) is here and he is ready and raring to go," noted Chai Chong. "International football star, Dwight Yorke, who, like Lara, is from Trinidad and Tobago, was also expected to be here but unfortunately, he could not make it."

Based on their individual records on the PGA circuit, Wi and Waite are both well-established players. Waite won the Kemper Open in 1993 while Wi has had two fourth-place finishes on the circuit this year.

However, the slight favourite will be hometown boy Bloomfield who knows the course very well and is accustomed to winning in Montego Bay. While his international record might not be a lavish one, he is now playing on the Canadian tour and is seemingly poised for the big times.

While the US$70,000 in total prize money and various trophies will be at stake for all the participants, the senior professionals above the age of 50 will also be vying for a special senior's purse.