Matchplay Championship to be played at Forest of Arden

The Matchplay Championship has announced it has reached an agreement with Marriott Forest of Arden for the prestigious venue to host the annual regional finals for the next three years.

Marriott Forest of Arden has played host to several European Tour events in recent years, including the British Masters and the English Open.

The North Regional event will take place on April 3 2012, with the South Regional on April 5 2012.

The Grand Final will be hosted by the Dubai Marriott Courtyard Hotel and will be contested over four rounds of golf at the Els Club.

John Woosey, managing director of The JRW Group, said: "This is an important development for the Matchplay Championship, which not only demonstrates the growing pedigree of the tournament but our ambition to provide the most complete golf experience for our competitors.

"You only have to look at the list of winners the Forest of Arden has produced, in order to realise that this is a quality championship venue. Three-time winner on this year's European Tour Thomas Bjorn, former Ryder Cup Captain Colin Montgomerie and Open Champion Darren Clarke are just a few to have won here.

"Clearly it has identified great champions over the years and will now play an integral role in determining which players are whisked off on the trip-of-a-lifetime to Dubai and compete in our Grand Final."

Marriott Forest of Arden's director of golf, Iain Burns, said: "We are delighted to host the Matchplay Championship Regional Finals for the first time and look forward to welcoming the wide-range of golfers that this tournament attracts.

"With a rich heritage in tournament golf and our location in the Midlands, just south of Birmingham, we are ideally placed to welcome golfers from all over the UK. We're looking forward to the next three years and watching the Matchplay Championship go from strength to strength."