Singh and Els ready to add to rich history

Another chapter will be written in the history of the World Match Play Championship at Wentworth this week as Vijay Singh and Ernie Else lead the chase for golf's biggest cash prize.

Another chapter will be written in the history of the World Match Play Championship at Wentworth this week as Vijay Singh and Ernie Els lead the chase for golf's biggest cash prize.

Singh and Els, the top two players in the world rankings, head the 16-man field competing for golf’s richest first prize of £1m (€1.45m).

Even the first-round losers walk away with £60,000 (€87,200) – 12 times Arnold Palmer’s reward when he became the first winner of the title in 1964.

In the 40 years in between there have been a number of memorable matches.

In the 1965, semi-finals, seven down after 19 holes to Tony Lema and still five down with nine to go, Gary Player showed his fighting qualities to win on the first extra hole. It remains the competition’s biggest-ever fightback.

In the 1972 semi-finals, Lee Trevino was four up on Tony Jacklin at lunch, Jacklin then went to the turn in 29 to lead by one but Trevino birdied the 28th, eagled the 30th and after the 35th was shared in birdies he made another on the last to triumph. Jacklin’s round of 63 was not enough.

In the 1982 first round, Sandy Lyle trailed rival Nick Faldo by six at halfway but covered the next 17 holes in eight under and won two and one.

In the 1983 first round, 53-year-old Arnold Palmer led Seve Ballesteros by one with one to play.

When he was at the back of the final green for two and the Spaniard 50 yards short it looked all over, but Ballesteros dramatically chipped in and won at the third sudden-death hole.

In the 1986 second round, Lyle and Tommy Nakajima both produced opening rounds of 65, Lyle then went four-up with a run of five birdies and an eagle before Nakajima took six of the next seven holes. Lyle, however, finished birdie-eagle to match the Japanese player’s 64 and won at the 37th. Nakajima was 14 under par and lost.

In the 1989 final, Ryder Cup partners a month earlier, Faldo and Ian Woosnam met for the title.

Woosnam’s morning 65 still made him only one-up. He increased that to three with seven to go but Faldo eagled the 30th, birdied three of the next five to level and made a 30-foot eagle putt to win on the last.

In the 1994 second round: in a match containing an incredible 12 twos – seven of them from Ballesteros – Ernie Els marked his debut in the event by holing his approach to the third and winning two and one, the first of 11 successive victories by the South African until he lost the 1997 final to Singh.

In the 2001 final, Woosnam matched his own tournament record of seven successive birdies and turned in a record 28.

Yet he trailed by two at lunch as Padraig Harrington equalled another record by coming home in 30 with seven birdies for a 61. With 12 to play the Dubliner was three in front, but 43-year-old Woosnam struck back to become the oldest-ever winner.