FULFORD Golf Club enters its second century hosting a prestigious championship.

The English Blind Golf Association's British Blind Open will be staged at the Heslington-based course on August 7-8 when more than 50 of the world's top blind golfers will compete.

There will also be a celebrity-studded pro-am event on Monday, August 6 featuring former Yorkshire and England cricket legend Brian Close and ex-Leeds United and England ace defender Norman Hunter.

Tournament organiser Malcolm Elrick, himself blind, explained how this year's British Open at Fulford has attracted golfers from as far away as Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, Europe and Scandinavia, as well as the home nations.

A winner of the EBGA's order of Merit in 2005, Elrick, who plays at Horsforth GC, said the field would be led by two current world champions, Simon Cookson, who plays off six and is the world B3 champion and Dave Morris, the world B1 title-holder, who is the overall world champion.

"The event starts with the pro-am in which Brian Close and Norman Hunter have agreed to play, and then the British Open will be over the next two days on a medal format," said Elrick.

"It is one of the highlights of the EBGA calendar and we are delighted to be able to play the event at such a renowned course as Fulford."

It is hoped too to provide a special junior academy, run by three teaching professionals, for blind youngsters in Yorkshire wishing to take up the game with Elrick hoping local businesses may wish to help to fund the event which would be on the opening morning of the three-day tournament at Fulford, which marked its centenary in 2006.

Anyone wishing to back the junior academy can contact the EGBA at its website www.blindgolf.co.uk or ring Elrick on 01274 561699.

The EGBA's founding sprang from the formation of the Visually Handicapped Golfers' Association in 1982.

Since then it has developed into the EGBA, the purpose of which is to provide visually handicapped people with the facility to train and compete.

All its competitions - it runs six annually - are under the auspices and rules of golf's governing body, the Royal & Ancient.

The only concession in the rules applied to all golfers is that a player may ground the club in a hazard and a guide can stand behind the player when a shot is played.

Clearly, the guide/caddy are vital to a player by giving them as much information as possible such as describing the terrain and distance of the required shot and then lining up the player.

On the green, it is the guide who also assesses the distance and borrow of the ball to the flag before each putt.