Ben Coley casts his eye over the field for this weeks inaugural Maybank Championship Malaysia, where he expects Louis Oosthuizen to impress... If youre still not sure how useful a tool Twitter can be when it comes to assessing golf tournaments, reports from those involved this week should make up your mind.The European Tour has been heading to Malaysia for many years now and recently theyve been joined by the PGA Tour, both using Kuala Lumpur G&CC as the stage for reasonably high-profile events. Peculiarly, that meant we got to see that golf course twice a year on Sky Sports. But this year, the European Tour heads back to Royal Selangor, a course not used since Alastair Forsyth beat Stephen Leaney in a play-off some 14 years ago.Unless youve both a particularly good memory and faith that very little has changed since - which is unlikely given that extensive renovations have taken place - theres very little to go on.Thankfully, pretty much every player in this field kind enough to tweet over the last 48 hours has said the same thing - this old golf course is short, tight, fiddly, firm and fast. Those words are music to the years of some, particularly the more experienced, accurate professionals, but may have the likes of Thorbjorn Olesen and Danny Willett waking up in a cold sweat even in this most humid of climates.Both those players arrive in form having enjoyed great success in the Middle East, particularly Willett who of course won the Dubai Desert Classic. But neither can be called accurate off the tee and thats why Id prefer Louis Oosthuizen from those at the head of the betting. Oosthuizen won in Malaysia back in 2012 Of course, Oosthuizen is plenty long enough and he wouldve been well suited by a softer, longer test. But hes versatile too and many of his best performances, including at St Andrews in 2010, have been under firm conditions.Oosthuizens record in Malaysia shows four top-10 finishes from five starts while hes been inside the first three in both starts in Singapore, so there are no concerns about conditions and he could win in this country for the second time in his career.Granted, the South African has to bounce back from a missed cut in Dubai but hes sure to be inspired by Charl Schwartzels romp in Pretoria last week and can follow his friends lead with a big performance.Gregory Bourdys love affair with Malaysia began in the Eisenhower Trophy over a decade ago. Gregory Bourdy is a former runner-up in Malaysia at the Malaysian Open The Frenchman was the leading player for his country in the amateur team event and finished second in the individual standings, ahead of players of the calibre of Hunter Mahan and Ricky Barnes.Since then, hes managed three top-six finishes here as a professional while one of his standout European Tour performances came courtesy of victory at Fanling, the firm, fast, fiddly golf course which hosts the Hong Kong Open.Bourdy was hitting the ball well in the Middle East, hasnt missed a cut in months and should go well.At a bigger price, Marcus Fraser could also find this to his liking. Like Bourdy, Fraser is an accurate driver suited by courses like Fanling and Royal Selangor could be right up his street. Marcus Fraser has missed the cut in two of his three starts so far this year It was in fact Fraser who won individual honours in that Eisenhower Trophy I mentioned and having since won in Korea, his record in the Far East is very good.David Horseys is less impressive but he was second as a rookie in the 2009 Malaysian Open and should be well suited by the challenge ahead following a good effort last week in the Tshwane Open.Horsey has four titles to his name on the European Tour including on a firm, fast golf course in the Trophee Hassan, so he looks to have been underestimated in the betting. David Horsey finished inside the top-15 at last weeks Tshwane Open Finally, Australias Nathan Holman is a talented young player who played on the Asian Tour previously and should be at an advantage with that experience in mind.Holman contended for the Dubai Desert Classic until a disappointing Sunday and having already won this season courtesy of the Australian PGA, hes overpriced.Watch the Maybank Championship Malaysia throughout the week live on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf. Or watch from £6.99 without a contract, on NOW TV Also See: Oosthuizen seeks improvement Changes to European schedule Season Pass: Tshwane Open Golf live on Sky Sports 4 Air Force 1 Alte Graphic Sf Air Force 1 Mid Bianche . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. http://www.airforce1outletitalia.it/scontate-air-force-1-alte-bianche.html . Manuel was offered a position the day he was fired. He accepted earlier this week and the team made the announcement Friday. Air Force 1 Scontate Uomo . -- The Bishops Gaiters are showing they belong among the countrys top varsity football teams. Air Force 1 Alte Gore-Tex . LOUIS -- St.MONTREAL -- Quebec has found a place to play soccer on the international stage, but it is not in a World Cup or any other event with national teams. A group of 18 players patched together and coached by former Montreal Impact player Patrick Leduc will begin play Sunday in the International Tournament of Peoples and Cultures in Marseille, France. The week-long event has teams from provinces and regions that are not independent --although some wish to be -- but feel unique enough to have their own teams. The other squads are from Tibet, Iraqi Kurdistan, Aram in Syria, Western Sahara, the northern Indian regions of Ladahk and Nagaland and the host French region of Provence. "Its the first time that a senior male team (from Quebec) will play at the international level," said Yannick Saint-Germain, president of the team that calls itself Les Quebecois. "We have under-14 or under-16 teams that have played against France or Mexico, but as seniors, its the first time. "Its an historical moment for us, and I hope it wont be the last tournament for us." Leduc scrambled to find players whose clubs were willing to release them in mid-season and ended up with some decent talent in former Impact players Reda Agourram, Alex Suprenant and Kevin Cossette, former FC Edmonton member Fabrice Lassonde and others. Sovereigntists in Quebec have pushed for a "national" hockey team to play against Canada and other countries, but it has never come close to happening. Saint-Germain turned to soccer, where there is an international body called the Non-Federated Board overseeing soccer among cultures and regions that are not members of the sports world governing body FIFA. He attended the Viva World Cup, or non-FIFA world cup, last year in Kurdistan. Now he hopes to enter the Quebec team in next years tournament in Lapland. "Im not the only one who has dreamed of having a national team in hockey or soccer or any sport," said St-Germain. "Many people think about it. "I wanted to see if it was feasible. I Googled to see if there were other non-independent states with national teams and I discovered theres a lot." Zanzibar, and island off the coast of Tanzania in east Africa, for example. Or North Cyprus, which lost to Kurdistan in last years non-FIFA World Cup final. Saint-Germain and Leduc said the teams mission is cultural rather than political, but Quebecs independence movement is solidly behind it. The team is partly funded by the sovereigntist Parti Quebecois government and has backing from the ultra-nationalist St-Jean-Baptiste Society. The schedule includes a game against Tibet on June 24, Quebecs national holiday. "There are a lot of non-independent nations that play internationally in their confederations, like Puerto Rico, for example," said Saint-Germain. "As I say, football independence has nothing to do with political independence. "Its two different things. Of course people who are for the independence of Quebec are very happy about this project, and I understand that, but theres no relation. You can be a province and play. Ontario or New Brunswick could play, why not?" Leduc said the team haas not taken a political position.dddddddddddd "We didnt base our selection on whether you vote for the Parti Quebecois or the Liberals," he said. "I have francophones, anglophones, allophones, but I only wanted to know if they were forward, midfielder or defender. "Ive realized also that whether they vote blue or red, it doesnt matter. Theyre proud to represent Quebec. A 25-year-old player is really happy to be part of a select team and to play at the elite level once again in his career." It was a proud moment to put on the blue and white shirt with the fleur-de-lys on the front for Cossette, who plays semipro in Quebec City. "At 16, I played for Quebec in a Canadian championship, but to represent it at the senior level and to play with the best in Quebec is a source of pride," he said. "Im completely a Quebecer. "I have no other nationality." Tommy Lucas, the bilingual former captain of the McGill Redmen, has no problem with it. "Its my home and its always been my home," he said. "My parents are from England but I was born here. "Especially Montreal, this is where I belong. Im excited to represent Quebec. I feel a strong sense of pride and thats definitely going to help me perform during the tournament." The team is not sanctioned by the Quebec Soccer Federation, which was in the spotlight last week for its controversial decision to ban turbans and other religious headgear, only to rescind the order when FIFA clarified its rules. The QSF is affiliated with FIFA through the Canadian Soccer Association. Leduc said they approached the federation for support and found them "ambivalent. "In future, maybe long term, wed like to be sanctioned by the federation and play official games, whether it be against teams like Catalonia or other regions, or official games. Haiti is coming here this summer, so why not have a Quebec team play them?" The players gathered for one last fundraiser Tuesday night at a bistro called Massila, the ancient name for Marseille, which was designated by the European Union as European Capital of Culture for 2013. They held their first practice later that night. They wont have much of a budget. The trip will cost about $40,000, with the team staying in a university dorm and getting around on public transit. But they hope to do well on the pitch, even if they have no idea of the level of play of most opponents. "I expect varying levels," said Leduc. "I expect Provence will be a tough game. "Kurdistan I know will be a really tough team, but I dont know how strong Tibet will be. Its fun that theyre participating." It will be a grind. Quebec opens with games on consecutive days against Western Sahara, Tibet and Provence. The semifinals are on June 27 with the final the following day. There are consolation games for those that dont make the semis. They are entering the unknown, but Agourram was adamant it is not vacation and they will give their best on the pitch. "We know nothing about the teams were going to play against, but I think we have a good team and Im confident well have good results," he said. ' ' '
