MGA fail to secure title sponsor for 2017 Open

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Open golf championship is off for the second straight year after the Malaysian Golf Association (MGA), the event owners, failed to secure a title sponsor.

The MGA had hoped to bring back the national Open, which was first held in 1962, in November.

“Together with our promoter, Lagardere Sport, we have been working really hard (to secure a title sponsor), but couldn’t,” said MGA president Tan Sri Mohd Anwar Mohd Nor.

“We have now switched our target to (holding the Malaysian Open) in January (2018) instead.

“We recently approached SMBC (Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation), the title sponsor of Singapore Open. Hopefully, there will be a favourable outcome.

“Getting a title sponsor is the only stumbling block. Once we secure one, it’s all systems go.”

The MGA have been struggling to raise funds for the championship since long-term partner Maybank and event promoter GlobalOne cut ties with them in June 2015.

National banking giant Maybank and GlobalOne went their own way and organised the Maybank Championship last year. It is jointly sanctioned by the Asian and European Tours.

The Malaysian Open was last held in February 2015, with India’s Anirban Lahiri lifting the trophy at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club (now TPC Kuala Lumpur).