WOBURN, England (AFP) - Retief Goosen will have friend and rival Ernie Els firmly in his sights when he tees off in the two-million-euro Heritage tournament here on Thursday.
With Els not in action, Goosen has the chance to close the gap on his compatriot at the top of the European Tour's money list and boost his bid to add a third Order of Merit title to the ones he won in 2001 and 2002.
European Ryder Cup heroes Colin Montgomerie, Padraig Harrington, Ian Poulter and David Howell are all in action in the newly established tournament.
Three other members of the European team - Paul Casey, Paul McGinley and Thomas Levet - pulled out citing exhaustion after their exertions on the other side of the Atlantic.
Goosen will be hoping the likes of Montgomerie will be equally drained, leaving him with a clear run at the 330,330 euro cheque on offer to the winner.
That would not be enough for him to overtake Els but by closing the gap to under 72,000 euros it would ensure an exciting finale to the season.