Football stars set for golf tournament in Tanah Merah

John Terry versus Phil Jagielka. Jack Wilshere versus Michael Carrick.

We're not talking football here - but golf.

An array of football stars, past and present, is set to make an appearance in Singapore during the Players Cup, an invitational golf tournament at Tanah Merah Country Club's revamped Garden Course from June 24 to 26.

The organisers, Worldwide Sports & Entertainment, will also stage an Icons Cup event in Dubai next week, which will feature past masters such as Luis Figo, Robbie Fowler, Andriy Shevchenko and Dwight Yorke.

Both tournaments will be played in the Ryder Cup format, and the Players Cup will see a Rest of the World (ROTW) team do battle against Team England.

The England team will be captained by Lee Westwood, while Darren Clarke will lead Team ROTW.

Among some of the current EPL stars set to make their way here are Theo Walcott, Gareth Barry, James Milner, Terry and Wilshere.

Former stars include Alan Shearer, Andy Cole and Teddy Sheringham.

The ROTW team will feature the likes of Dutch legend Ruud Gullit and Argentine icon Gabriel Batistuta.

Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish and current Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola are also confirmed names for the three-day tournament.

The New Paper understands that Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney, Manchester City talisman Sergio Aguero and Juventus striker Carlos Tevez are on the yet-to-confirm list.

"These icons performed in front of millions and have excelled on the football field," said WWSE CEO Thomas Brookes.

"(Let's) see how they hold their nerve when in a competitive environment outside of their comfort zone, and under the captaincy of Major-winning PGA Golf stars.

"It will make for incredible viewing."

Team ROTW captain Clarke, 46, has tallied 22 professional wins worldwide, including the 2011 Open Championship.

As head of Team Rest of World, the Northern Irishman will also draw from his experience as a member of five European Ryder Cup teams (1997, '99, '02, '04, '06) and his vice-captain role on Europe's victorious 2010 squad.

"It will be really interesting to see how these great sportsmen react to the unique pressures of team golf," said Clarke.

"Collectively they have won scores of trophies, titles, medals and the like, but pushing them to find their top form on the course will be a fun challenge."

Westwood, who overtook Tiger Woods as the world No. 1 in Oct 2010, has represented Europe in nine Ryder Cups, winning seven editions.

The 41-year-old Englishman is one of the few golfers who have won tournaments on every major continent.

LIST OF STARS HEADED TO TANAH MERAH

TEAM ENGLAND

Gareth Barry

Jimmy Bullard

Michael Carrick

Andrew Cole

Ashley Cole

Joe Cole

Michael Dawson

Keiron Dyer

David Fairclough

Robbie Fowler

Phil Jagielka

Adam Johnson

Kevin Keegan

Joleon Lescott

Gary Lineker

James Milner

Kevin Phillips

Jamie Redknapp

Alan Shearer

Teddy Sheringham

Theo Walcott

Jack Wilshire

Yet to confirm:

John Terry

Phil Jones

Gary Neville

Phil Neville

Michael Owen

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Wayne Rooney

 Paul Scholes

REST OF THE WORLD

Gabriel Batistuta (Argentina)

Craig Bellamy (Wales)

Nicklas Bendtner (Denmark)

Patrick Berger (Czech Republic)

Frank de Boer (Holland)

Ronald de Boer (Holland)

Kenny Dalglish (Scotland)

Pep Guardiola (Spain)

Ruud Gullit (Holland)

John Jensen (Denmark)

Pep Guardiola (Spain)

Dirk Kuyt (Holland)

Sebastian Larsson (Sweden)

James Morrison (Scotland)

Aaron Ramsey (Wales)

Peter Schmeichel (Denmark)

Andriy Shevchenko (Ukraine)

Vladimir Smicer (Czech Republic)

Dwight Yorke (Trinidad & Tobago)

l Yet to confirm:

Ronaldo (Brazil)

Carlos Tevez (Argentina)

Bastien Schweinsteiger (Germany)

Sergio Aguero (Argentina)

Gareth Bale (Wales)

Marco van Basten (Holland)

Franz Beckenbaeur (Germany)

Luis Figo (Portugal)

Ryan Giggs (Wales)

Thomas Mueller (Germany)

Robin van Persie (Holland)

 Alessandro del Piero (Italy)

This article was first published on April 17, 2015.
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