Fleetwood looks for hat trick of Falcon Trophy

Abu Dhabi - Emirati qualifier Saif Thabet is amongst 29 nationalities represented

Ryder Cup hero Tommy Fleetwood seeks an unprecedented third successive Falcon Trophy when 21 Ryder Cup golfers and seven Major winners tee off at the $7million four-day Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship from Wednesday at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
Joining a field which also contains American stars, World No.2 Brooks Koepka, World No.3 Dustin Johnson and 2016 Open Champion Henrik Stenson, is one of the most exciting talents in golf, Min Woo Lee. At just 20 years old, Lee recently won the South Australia Amateur Classic and, after a stellar amateur career, is making his professional debut this week courtesy of an invitation from the Championship committee.
The two other players benefiting from a Championship Committee invite are Germany's Marcel Siem who has been ranked as high as 48 in the world, and China's amateur star Yuxin Lin, who won the 2017 Asia-Pacific tournament resulting in qualification for both the 2018 Masters and the 2018 Open Championship last year.
Joining them in a bid for glory in Abu Dhabi will be the three qualifiers who battled it out to come through the pre-qualifying tournament at Yas Links last week. European Tour professional Callum Shinkwin from England shot a 63 on his way to winning the pre-qualifying tournament and Challenge Tour professional Dominic Foos from Germany also qualifies as best UAE Resident. The final place was claimed by leading Emirati Amateur, Saif Thabet from Abu Dhabi.
Aref Al Awani, General Secretary of Abu Dhabi Sports Council, said: "We are delighted to welcome so many of the world's best players to Abu Dhabi. The field of 132 players is rich in quality and diversity with 29 nationalities represented. Tommy certainly has a massive challenge on his hands if he wants to retain the Falcon Trophy for the third time. I urge all UAE residents to come and watch some of the highest quality golf you'll see this year."