European Tour star Stephen Dodd has confirmed he will play in next week's Ryder Cup Wales 2010 Welsh National PGA Championship which is also raising vital funds for a cancer charity.
The 2007 Welsh Open champion is one of more than a 100 strong field assembling at Cardiff Golf Club from September 4-6 including defending champion, Sion Bebb, who will be looking to make it a hat-trick having won the tournament at Tenby Golf Club last year and Southerndown in 2005.
The event is also important for the Ryder Cup Wales' official charity Tenovus which is receiving proceeds from Monday's pro-am with 39 teams competing. Tenovus plays an important role in Wales, funding research and after care for cancer patients.
Claudia McVie, chief executive of Tenovus, said: "Our link with Ryder Cup Wales, enabling our presence at events such as the Welsh National Championship, is a great boost for Tenovus and provides us with fantastic fundraising opportunities.
"It's thanks to the support of such partnerships that Tenovus is able to raise significant funds and further enhance the charity's profile."
Cardiff Golf Club will be hosting its first national tournament in 19 years. The last time this prestigious tournament was held at the course in 1988, former Ryder Cup captain and Welsh Ambassador for Golf, Ian Woosnam, won the title.
Ryder Cup Wales 2010 Ltd chairman John Jermine said they were delighted to partner the PGA in hosting the Welsh National Championship.
"We are pleased to sponsor this event as well as the Young PGA Professionals, the Welsh Open and the WPGA One Day Series," he said.
"These events are an important part of our annual 'Summer of Golf' programme which we organise every year, taking the best golfers throughout Wales."
PGA director of golf Steve Cox added: "As you expect we were all delighted when Cardiff confirmed they would stage this championship. It has always been our desire to see our premier Welsh championship hosted by the leading clubs in Wales, and in Cardiff we have certainly achieved that.
Prize money for Wales's premier national championship will be £42,500, with the winner receiving in excess of £6,000 and automatic qualification for the 2008 Celtic Manor Resort Wales Open.
Wales' Dodd and Bebb, along with the rest of the field, will have a real challenge at the Cardiff course with its tight, tree-lined fairways and small greens requiring pin-point accuracy.