Seeded Nations announced for the 2002 EMC World Cup in Mexico
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The following are the 18 seeded nations.

No. 1 Seed -- United States (Phil Mickelson/David Toms) Phil Mickelson and David Toms will represent the United States in this year's EMC World Cup. Mickelson, the world's second-ranked player, has won 21 times in his PGA TOUR career, including this year's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and Canon Greater Hartford Open. A veteran of four Ryder Cup and four Presidents Cup teams, this will be his first appearance in the EMC World Cup. Toms, the sixth-ranked player in the world, won the 2001 PGA Championship, one of his seven career PGA TOUR titles. He is also playing in the EMC World Cup for the first time.

7TH OCTOBER 2002 | 07:41 AM

The following are the 18 seeded nations.

No. 1 Seed -- United States (Phil Mickelson/David Toms) Phil Mickelson and David Toms will represent the United States in this year's EMC World Cup. Mickelson, the world's second-ranked player, has won 21 times in his PGA TOUR career, including this year's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and Canon Greater Hartford Open. A veteran of four Ryder Cup and four Presidents Cup teams, this will be his first appearance in the EMC World Cup. Toms, the sixth-ranked player in the world, won the 2001 PGA Championship, one of his seven career PGA TOUR titles. He is also playing in the EMC World Cup for the first time.

No. 2 Seed -- Fiji (Vijay Singh/Dinesh Chand) Fiji earns the second seed based on the play of Vijay Singh. Singh has won 31 times around the globe, including this year's Shell Houston Open, his 10th career PGA TOUR title. Singh will partner with Dinesh Chand, a regular competitor on the Japan Golf Tour. Chand, whose best finish this year is a tie for ninth in the PGA Matchplay Championship, has won twice in Japan, including last year's Munsingwear Open KSP Cup.

No. 3 Seed -- Ireland (Padraig Harrington/Paul McGinley) Padraig Harrington, the ninth-ranked player in the world, earns the third seed for Ireland. McGinley, who is ranked 72nd in the world, earned the Ryder Cup-clinching half point for Europe last week at The Belfry.

No. 4 Seed -- New Zealand (Michael Campbell/Craig Perks) Michael Campbell will again lead the New Zealand team. Campbell teamed with David Smail to finish tied for second in Japan last year, losing to South Africa in a four-team playoff. This year Campbell will team with Craig Perks, winner of the 2002 PLAYERS Championship.

No. 5 Seed -- Argentina (Angel Cabrera/Eduardo Romero) The team of Angel Cabrera and Eduardo Romero will again represent Argentina.

No. 6 Seed -- Japan (Shigeki Maruyama/Toshi Izawa) Shigeki Maruyama and Toshi Izawa will team together for the second year to represent Japan. Last year, in front of home fans at The Taiheiyo Club in Gotemba City, Japan, they tied for 11th. Maruyama made history earlier this year, when he became the first player from Japan to win for a second time on the PGA TOUR with his victory in the Verizon Byron Nelson Classic. Izawa, an 11-time winner on the Japan Golf Tour, posted his best finish in 2002 when he was runnerup at the Aiful Cup. In addition to his two career PGA TOUR titles, Maruyama has won nine times on the Japan Golf Tour.

No. 7 Seed -- Canada (Mike Weir/Ian Leggatt) Mike Weir and Ian Leggatt will form the Canadian team for the second consecutive year. Last year in Japan, the twosome tied for sixth. Weir, winner of the 2000 American Express Championship, will attempt to become the only player other than Tiger Woods to win more than one World Golf Championships event.

No. 8 Seed -- Sweden (Niclas Fasth/Carl Pettersson) Sweden will be represented by European Ryder Cup player Niclas Fasth and second-year European Tour player Carl Petterson. Fasth, the 32nd-ranked player in the world, has had five top-10 finishes in 2002, with his best being a second in the Dubai Desert Classic and a tie for second in the Murphy's Irish Open.

No. 9 Seed -- England (Justin Rose/Nick Faldo) Justin Rose has emerged as one of the top players in the game with his successful 2002 season. He has won four times around the world on three tours. On the European Tour he has recorded victories in the Dunhill Championship and Victor Chandler British Masters. Rose also won on the South African Tour at the Nashua Masters and on the Japan Golf Tour at the Chunichi Crowns. He is currently seventh on the European Tour's Volvo Order of Merit. Rose, who will be making his first appearance for England, will partner with Nick Faldo, who will be playing for the fourth time. Faldo is in the midst of his best season in recent years. He has recorded five top-10 finishes worldwide, including a third at the Caltex Singapore Masters and a tie for fifth at the U.S. Open.

No. 10 Seed -- Australia (Adam Scott/Craig Parry) Adam Scott, who at age 22 has already won three times on the European Tour, will represent Australia for the second time. Scott has won twice in 2002 with victories in the Qatar Masters and Gleneagles Scottish PGA Championship. This year he will partner with Craig Parry.

No. 11 Seed -- Scotland (Paul Lawrie/Andrew Oldcorn) The 1999 British Open champion, Paul Lawrie, will team with countryman Andrew Oldcorn. Lawrie is having superb season, having earned his fifth career European Tour title in the Celtic Manor Resort Wales Open. He is currently the 46th-ranked player in the world.

No. 12 Seed -- Korea (K.J. Choi/Hur Suk-ho) K.J. Choi, the 55th-ranked player in the world, earns the 13th seed for Korea. Choi is one of seven multiple winners on the 2002 PGA TOUR.. He earned his first title in May at the Compaq Classic of New Orleans, then followed with another two weeks ago at the Tampa Bay Classic presented by Buick. A winner of four other events around the globe, Choi currently ranks 17th on the PGA TOUR money list with more than $1.9 million. Choi's partner in the EMC World Cup is Hur Suk-ho, the 140th-ranked player in the world, who has won twice in 2002 at the Shinhan Donghae Open on the Asian Tour and the Juken Sangyo Open Hiroshima on the Japan Golf Tour.

No. 13 Seed -- Denmark (Anders Hansen/Søren Hansen) Anders Hansen and Søren Hansen, a pair of winners on this year's European Tour, will represent Denmark.

No. 14 Seed -- France (Thomas Levet/Raphael Jacquelin) Thomas Levet, who gained worldwide attention with his tie for second at this year's British Open, will lead the team from France. The 76th-ranked player in the world, Levet has won twice on the European Tour.

No. 15 Seed -- South Africa (Tim Clark/Rory Sabbatini) South Africa, the defending champions of the EMC World Cup, will be represented to by two different players in this year's competition. Last year's team, which consisted of Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, is unable to compete due to prior commitments. This year's South African team will consist of Tim Clark and Rory Sabbatini. Clark lead the Southern Africa Tour's Order of Merit in 2001/2002, winning the Bell's South African Open along the way. Sabbatini, winner of the 2000 Air Canada Championship, is ranked 92nd in the world.

No. 16 Seed -- Wales (Ian Woosnam/Bradley Dredge) Ian Woosnam, winner of 44 events around the world, will represent Wales for the 16th time. In 1987 he teamed with David Llewellyn to win the World Cup. Woosnam is currently 33rd on the European Tour's Volvo Order of Merit and has four top-10 finishes in 2002, including ties for third in the Novotel Perrier Open de France and the Linde German Masters.

No. 17 Seed -- Trinidad & Tobago (Stephen Ames/Robert Ames) In the midst of his best season on the PGA TOUR, Stephen Ames will team with his brother Robert to represent Trinidad & Tobago.

No. 18 Seed -- Germany (Alex Cejka/Sven Strüver) Alex Cejka and Sven Strüver will represent Germany. Cejka, a three-time winner on the European Tour, is the 111th-ranked player in the world.

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