Young, old stars clash in JW Classic

Could 2003 be the year the ‘Young Guns’ shoot it out with the established stars and win?

The 2003 Johnnie Walker Classic at Perth’s Lake Karrinyup Country Club, Feb. 13-16, will be the first opportunity for such a showdown.

Sergio Garcia, Adam Scott, Justin Rose, Paul Casey, Nick Dougherty, and Andrew Buckle will contest the Aus $2.85 million event alongside established stars Ernie Els, the World no. 3, Retief Goosen, the defending champion and World no. 5, the six-time Major winner Nick Faldo, the hitting American John Daly , the winner of two Majors and the Australian no. 1 Robert Allenby.

Commenting on the field, Stephen Morley, Johnnie Walker Global brand director, said, "Setting goals, testing themselves against the best and a determination to achieve their dreams are the things that inspire these young golfers to become the future greats of the game. These same qualities lie at the very heart of the Johnnie Walker brand, so – as in previous years – we are delighted to include and welcome so many ‘young guns’ in the field."

Sergio Garcia turned professional in 1999 and went on to win the Irish Open, the German Masters and was part of the three-man Spanish team that won that year’s Alfred Dunhill Cup as well as the three victories in his first year as a pro, Sergio finished runner-up to Tiger Woods in the US PGA Championship and collected three and a half points out of five in a brilliant Ryder Cup debut at Brookline, Massachusetts.

The 22-year old won twice on the US PGA Tour in 2001. He started the 2002 season in a blaze of glory by winning the Mercedes Championship in Hawaii, and went on to demonstrate a remarkable consistency in the Majors: eighth in the US Master; fourth in the US Open; tied eighth in the Open Championship and equal tenth in the US PGA Championship.

These performances demonstrated his growing maturity and resulted in Sergio finishing the year ranked no. 4 in the World.

Adam Scott, 22, continued his rise in 2002 winning two European titles and finishing seventh on the European money list, the Volvo Order of Merit. The Australian won the Qatar Masters in March by six shots and clinched the Diageo Scottish PGA Championship in August by a record 10 strokes. He also impressed in his first visit to the US Masters trying for ninth at Augusta National Scott, who now has three European titles to his name, ended the year ranked 41st in the world.

Justin Rose had a magnificent year in 2002, winning four events and surging to a world ranking of 39. The 22-year-old Englishman won twice on the European Tour – at the Dunhill championship and British Masters. In between those two victories, he won the Nashua Masters in South Africa and the Chunichi Crowns in Japan.

Rose will be joined by two of his compatriots in Perth: Paul Casey and Nick Dougherty. Casey, 25, won the Scottish PGA Championship during his debut year in Europe in 2001 and recorded nine top-15 finishes last year. In a distinguished amateur career, he won the English Amateur twice and represented Great Britain with distinction in international competition.

Dougherty, a protégé of Faldo, made great strides in 2002, his first full year on the European Tour. The 20-year-old finished 36th on the Volvo Order of Merit.