Asian Tour golf chief vows to win OneAsia battle

SINGAPORE — Asian Tour chief Kyi Hla Han on Thursday vowed to win his battle with the rival OneAsia Tour, saying there was not enough room for both of them.OneAsia was launched last year, bringing together tours from China, South Korea and Australia, in a direct threat to the established Asian Tour.It has 10 tournaments this season to the Asian Tour's 25, but executive chairman Kyi Hla Han accuses them of bringing nothing new to the table in terms of sponsorship."If OneAsia had done that, we could probably have sat down and had a talk and worked it out," he told AFP."But right now, they are flat out stealing our tournaments and forcefully doing it."He added that it was generally acknowledged within golfing circles that two tours could not realistically exist in the same region."I don't think it is fair for the players to have to chose and when we had our federation meetings at the Masters and the Open, people pretty much understood and acknowledged that there is not room for two tours," he said."If another tour came into the US, would the PGA just sit back and let the players play -- I don't think so. It wouldn't happen in Europe either."Most Asian Tour members remained loyal and were not tempted to jump ship by the one million dollars prize-money routinely offered on OneAsia and the weak fields, which makes winning easier, he said.To counter any exodus, the Asian Tour has rigorously enforced regulations that players who do compete without prior permission are fined 5,000 US dollars, with the treat of suspension hanging over them.It has seen a handful of players engage in a restraint of trade action against the Asian Tour in the Singapore High Court.A judge has refused a temporary order preventing the Asian Tour from fining them for playing on OneAsia and the decision could now be appealed or the case go to trial.Kyi Hla Han defended the policy."Our release policy is exactly what the PGA Tour and European Tour has in their handbooks," he said."We're not doing anything different and I think it is necessary

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