The Asian Development Tour will rev up its goal to unearth future champions with the staging of the inaugural Clearwater Masters later this month.

The Clearwater Masters will be played at the scenic Clearwater Sanctuary Golf Resort in Batu Gajah, Perak, which is a 90-minute drive from the capital city of Kuala Lumpur, from April 28 to May 1.

It will be the second Asian Development Tour event to be played this season following the Grameenphone Bangladesh Masters which was won by Siddikur of Bangladesh.

With a prize fund of US$75,000, the Clearwater Masters will play a major role in the Asian Development Tour season where the top-three finishers on the Order of Merit will earn their Asian Tour cards for 2012.

Last year, Malaysians S. Siva Chandhran and Akhmal Tarmizee took a leap in their careers when they finished first and third respectively on the Order of Merit to earn playing opportunities on the elite Asian Tour this season.

Yap Ken Nan, the Chief Executive Officer of Clearwater Sanctuary hailed the pathway provided by the Asian Development Tour that enhances the playing opportunities for budding golfers.

"We are delighted to tie-up with the Asian Development Tour as they have a strong platform that complements our goal of improving the standard of golf in the country," said Yap.

"The Clearwater Masters gives us the opportunity to promote golf in Perak. There are many golf courses in Malaysia and Perak offers an ideal golfing holiday destination for foreigners as well as locals."

The Asian Development Tour was launched with five tournaments last season and is structured along the lines of the Nationwide Tour in the United States and European Challenge Tour.

Asian Tour Executive Chairman Kyi Hla Han said there is immense talent available in Malaysia and around the region.

"There are a lot of young and talented golfers in Malaysia who are keen to gain more experience and sharpen their skills. We believe that more Malaysian players like Siva and Akhmal will benefit through the Asian Development Tour platform and I would like to express our fullest appreciation to Clearwater Sanctuary for taking this initiative," said Han.

Among the players expected to feature in the Clearwater Masters include flamboyant Japanese Yosuke Tsukada, who currently leads the Asian Development Tour Order of Merit, Md. Shakhawat Sohel of Bangladesh and local hopes Sukree Othman and Haziq Hamizan.

More tournaments are expected to join the Asian Development Tour this season with events in Chinese Taipei and Indonesia already confirmed.