CORRECTION: According to the regulations of the Japan Golf Association the name of the Japanese amateur player can't be published. It has been deleted from the fourth paragraph. The Finnair Masters will be teeing off for its fifth year this August 28th to 30th at Helsinki Golf Club. Part of the Ladies European Tour, it is the most prestigious golfing event held in Finland. Over 120 top women golfers from around the world are gathering in Tali this week to compete for the total purse of 200.000 euros. "It's a great honour for Finnair to once more be a part of this top-class international event. We look forward to welcoming the players to Helsinki", said Cia Branders, Global Marketing Manager of Finnair. Set to compete alongside professional women golfers at the Masters are four talented amateurs invited by Finnair to represent their respective countries of China, Japan, India, and South Korea. Aged 14 to 18, the chosen amateur athletes each have a strong competitive history and were selected with the close cooperation of their embassies in Finland and their countries' official golf associations. The promising amateurs Simin Feng (China), Gauri Monga (India), Je-Yoon Yang (South Korea) have each expressed thanks to Finnair for this rare opportunity to play on the professional circuit. Prior to the tournament the four young players will have the chance to practice their strokes at the Finnair Masters Pro-Am. Finnair Masters Global Challenge winners to compete at the ProAm Also travelling from Asia this week are the winners of the Finnair Masters Global Challenge. Launched last June, the Global Challenge is an international competition through which amateur golfers were given the chance to participate at the Finnair Masters Pro Am by registering their golf rounds online at the Finnair Masters web site. By entering the highest scores, Pankaj Malik and Aashana Monga from India and Hong Kyu Lim of South Korea have each garnered a coveted spot at the Pro Am. The Global Challenge winners' prizes include flights, accommodations and tournament fees for the Finnair Masters Pro-Am as well as an exclusive invitation to the Pro-Am Gala Dinner. In recent years, Finnair has emerged as a major player in traffic between Europe and Asia by flying the short and fast northern route to ten Asian cities, via Helsinki. Finnair's intercontinental destinations in Asia are Seoul, Delhi, Mumbai, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Bangkok. Finnair's competitive strategy is based on its high quality of service, its status as one of the most punctual airlines in the industry and on Europe-Asia traffic where it offers the fastest, most eco-efficient and most convenient connections to Asia's large hubs from those European cities which do not offer direct flights. Finnair Plc Communications 27 August 2009 Further information: Finnair Media Desk (24 h), tel. +358 9 818 4020, comms[a]finnair.com Finnair Group website: www.finnairgroup.com via.Helsinki: www.viahelsinki.com Finnair image bank: www.finnair.com/gallery Mailing list updates: http://www.finnairgroup.com/media/media_7_3.html