Prom, who finished joint seventh in last week's Malaysian Open, will be joined by teen sensation Chinnarat Padungsil, currently No 7 on the Asian Tour, Thongchai Jaidee and Thaworn Wiratchant, who both held the Asian No 1 spot, veteran Prayad Marksaeng, Chapchai Nirat, Chawalit Plaphol and Thammanoon Sriroj.

The Thai contenders must make the most of their familiarity with the landscape and tropical atmosphere on the  island to win the tournament, co-sanctioned by the Asian and European Tours.

The locals will have the opportunity to tee off side by side with stars like world No 3 Adam Scott of Australia, Ernie Els of South Africa and his compatriot Retief Goosen, who makes his return to the Blue Canyon after winning the Tiger Skins.

Asian big names for the March 1-4 tournament include India's Jyoti Randhawa and Shiv Kapur, Taiwanese Wang Ter-chang and Mardan Mamat of Singapore. prize money of $416,660 (Bt14.9 million) will be presented to this year's winner. "I look forward to seeing an inspiring display from these Thai players," said Ted Rangchaikul, president of Diageo Moet Hennessy (Thailand) Limited.