Harrington's long haul as China joins tour

With the European Tour further expanding its borders by visiting China for the first time, a quirk in the new schedule for 2004 will mean Padraig Harrington will defend two titles he originally won six months apart in successive weeks but on opposite sides of the globe.

There may not be a major championship in May but it will be a busy month for the Irishman. Harrington will defend the BMW Asian Open he won 12 months ago in Taiwan at the Tomson Club in Shanghai, and then return to Heidelberg in Germany for the Deutsche Bank Open, where he beat Thomas Bjorn in a playoff last May.

Harrington will not want to miss out on another trip to the Far East, where he has proved rather successful. Only last week he won the Hong Kong Open, the opening event on the 2004 European Tour.

But while it has become routine for Europe's golfers to rack up the air miles with far-flung trips at the beginning and end of the year, once the European campaign gets going after the Masters the only long- haul flights are usually across the Atlantic.

The China trip will follow the British Masters at the Forest of Arden, which has slipped into the old slot as the opening British event of the season following the demise of the Benson and Hedges International, and will be followed in turn by the Deutsche Bank Open.

May will end more traditionally with the Volvo PGA Championship at Wentworth, an event Harrington skipped this year though he promised it was only a one-off.

The Tour will comprise 44 tournaments in 23 countries, including the Ryder Cup at Oakland Hills in Michigan in September, with a further three events still to be confirmed, including the replacement for the Lancôme Trophy.

The World Cup will return to European soil for the first time since 1992 when it is played in Seville in November.

FAR FLUNG FAIRWAYS: 2004 EUROPEAN TOUR DATES

JANUARY
15-18 South African Open (Western Cape)
22-25 Dunhill Championship (Johannesburg)
29-1 Feb Johnnie Walker Classic (Bangkok)

FEBRUARY
5-8 Heineken Classic (Victoria, Australia)
12-15 ANZ Championship (Australia)
19-22 Malaysian Open (Kuala Lumpur)
25-29 Accenture Match Play (Carlsbad, California)

MARCH
4-7 Dubai Desert Classic (Dubai)
11-14 Qatar Masters (Qatar)
18-21 Caltex Masters (Singapore)
25-28 Madeira Island Open (Madeira)

APRIL
1-4 Algarve Open de Portugal (TBA)
8-11 Masters Tournament (Augusta National, Georgia)
15-18 TBA
22-25 Canarias Open de España (TBA)
29-2 May Italian Open (Milan)

MAY
6-9 British Masters (Forest of Arden, Warwickshire)
13-16 Asian Open (Shanghai)
20-23 Deutsche Bank Open (Heidelberg, Germany)
27-30 Volvo PGA Championship (Wentworth)

JUNE
3-6 The Wales Open (Newport)
10-13 Diageo Championship (Gleneagles)
17-20 US Open (Southampton, New York)
17-20 Aa St Omer Open (Lumbres, France)
24-27 Open de France (Paris)

JULY
1-4 European Open (Dublin)
8-11 Scottish Open (Loch Lomond)
15-18 Open Championship (Royal Troon, Ayrshire)
22-25 Irish Open (Drogheda)
29-1 Aug Scandinavian Masters (Malmo)

AUGUST
5-8 KLM Open (TBA)
12-15 US PGA Championship (Wisconsin)
12-15 Russian Open (Moscow)
19-22 NEC Invitational (Ohio)
26-29 BMW International Open (Munich)

SEPTEMBER
2-5 European Masters (Switzerland)
9-12 German Masters (Cologne)
17-19 Ryder Cup (Oakland Hills, Michigan)
23-26 TBA
30-3 Oct WGC - American Express Championship (Co Kilkenny)

OCTOBER
7-10 Dunhill Links Championship (St Andrews)
14-17 World Matchplay Championship (Wentworth)
14-17 Mallorca Classic (Majorca)
21-24 TBA
28-31 Volvo Masters (Valderrama)

NOVEMBER
18-21 World Cup (Seville)