Oosthuizen will be on a mission to win when he visits Singapore again

SOUTH African Louis Oosthuizen will compete in next year’s SMBC Singapore Open, organisers announced.

The 2010 British Open champion and runner-up when he last played in Singapore, is the latest star golfer to confirm for the tournament after it was recently unveiled that reigning US Masters champion Sergio Garcia from Spain will also be there.

The US$1mil tournament will be played at Sentosa Golf Club from Jan 18 to 21 and will be jointly sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the Japan Golf Tour Organisation. It will be the opening event of the season on both Tours.

In August, the world No. 21 finished joint runner-up at the US PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, making him a player who finished runner-up in all four Majors.

He is the seventh golfer to have done that, joining Craig Wood, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Greg Norman and Phil Mickelson.

Indeed, by his own admission Oosthuizen will be a driven man when he returns to Singapore, after he narrowly missed out in a play-off to Italy’s Matteo Manassero in 2012.

“I am really looking forward to getting back there and playing in the SMBC Singapore Open. It will be the perfect way for me to start the season, where I have great memories and where I know

I can win.”

The South African is an eighttime winner on the European Tour – including the 2012 Malaysian Open – and in South Africa where he has triumphed on seven occasions.

“I am really focused on winning titles and competing week in and week out and in 2018 that hopefully means starting with the SMBC Singapore Open,” added the 34-year-old.

Thailand’s Prayad Marksaeng won this year’s SMBC Singapore Open, in what was the 51st edition of the tournament.