T

he Istora Senayan sports complex in Central Jakarta, the exclusive venue of the Djarum Indonesia Open badminton tournament since 2004, sports huge badminton rackets as decoration at the entrance and numerous food stalls for the 2011 Djarum Indonesian Open Super Series Premier.

The eye-catching ornaments aside, the US$600,000 overall prize money and better organization are the biggest draws for world-class players in the 29th running of the tournament.

“Of course a bigger prize and better organizing of the event are two things that differentiate this year’s Indonesia Open Super Series Premium, which was previously a Super Series event,” tournament director Mimi Irawan told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of a qualification round Monday.

“In terms of facilities, we have also upgraded on-court lighting. Players also get to the court using separate entrance and exit doors,” she added.

Mimi said that there are several obligatory stops, such as going into the mixed zone and attending press conference, for winning players.

“But what is most important for players participating in this event is that they will collect points for their world ranking, which will be significant for the upcoming 2012 Olympics in London,” she added.

The winner of a Super Series Premier event gets a boost of 11,000 points, while runners-up receive 9,350 points, greater than the 9,200 points for the winner of a Super Series event.

Mimi acknowledged that the organizing of the newly elevated tournament may not be flawless.

Questions surround the participation of world No. 1 Lin Dan in the men’s singles following his decision to forfeit Sunday’s final at the Singapore Open due to illness.

Commenting on the new lndonesia Open, Danish world No. 5 Peter Gade said Indonesia and the tournament had always been a huge part of world badminton.

“It is very nice that Indonesia has gone forward and [is hosting a Premim tournament]. It deserves it. It is a high value tournament. Playing here is always historic,” he said.

Gade added that all tournaments should offer $600,000 in prize money. “Although prize money is not the most important thing for me, of course it is motivating.”

Tournament newcomer Indonesian Angga Pratama in the men’s singles lauded the new lighting. However, he complained about the strong air-conditioning.

Four years after being established as one of the Badminton World Federation’s (BWF) Super Series tournaments in 2007, the championship has been upgraded to become the second-most lucrative badminton tournament in the world with $600,000 in prize money from the previous $250,000.

However, it is still dwarfed by the $1.2 million Korean Open Super Series Premier.

BWF rules stipulate that the world’s top10 ranked shuttlers were obliged to compete. Those withdrawing from the event would be penalized $250 in the Premier championships.