Golf: Turkish Airlines Open 2016 kicks off Thursday

The fourth Turkish Airlines Open is set to kick off Thursday in Turkey's Mediterranean resort of Antalya.

A total of 78 professional golfers including Danny Willet, Lee Westwood, and Andy Sullivan will compete in the Turkish Airlines Open 2016, which is the first of three European Tour Final Series tournaments, according to the official website of the sports event.

Speaking at a press meeting Wednesday, Willet, 29, who is currently number 2 in The Race to Dubai standings, said the Final Series was starting with a great event in Turkey, the press release said.

"I have had a couple of nice results down here at the Turkish Airlines Open before and it is lovely to be here.

"Turkish Airlines is a brilliant sponsor and this is a beautiful place to play golf. We are set for a really good week," he added.

Another key golfer, Lee Westwood said this was his fifth time playing in Turkey.

"It is great to be back in Turkey and we are all looking forward to the week ahead. The course looks in fantastic condition and I have heard so many good things about it," he added.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also attended the launch of the tournament, which ends on Sunday, and has a $7 million prize fund.

This week's tournament in Antalya will be followed by the Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa ahead of the season finale DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, the statement said.