Arjun Atwal and Daniel Chopra will join the King's Cup golf tournament while Kiradech Aphibarnrat has withdrawn due to a hip injury.
The US$500,000 Asian Tour event, scheduled to tee off tomorrow at Singha Park Khon Kaen Golf Club, has welcomed Chopra and Atwal to its field of 144 players.
Sweden's Chopra had an impressive result in his last appearance in Thailand when he tied for sixth at the Thailand Golf Championship in 2012.
Seven-time Asian Tour winner Atwal, the first Indian to win a PGA Tour title at the 2010 Wyndham Championship, was crowned the Asian Tour No.1 in 2003. This year, Atwal has played six events on the Asian Tour and is 84th on the money list while Chopra is 86th after five tournaments.
Unfortunately, Thais fans will not be able to support local stars in defending champion Prayad Marksaeng and reigning Asian Tour No.1 Kiradech. The former will play at the Casio Open in Japan while the latter was forced to withdraw with a hip injury.
Kiradech, who shared fourth place in Manila last week, will return to action at next week's NedBank Golf Challenge in South Africa, where he will be joined by Thongchai Jaidee.
The best local hope this week will be in-form Prom Meesawat, who hopes to capitalise on his home advantage as he vies for the Asian Tour money list with four tournaments to go.
Last week, he finished third in Manila to boost his winnings to $516,512, leaving him $166,098 shy of money leader David Lipsky of the US.
With the winner's cheque of $90,000 up for grabs this week — and with Lipsky absent — Prom has an opportunity to close that gap significantly.
"Actually, my goal is to finish top two on the money list to get a place for the WGC-Cadillac Championship," said the two-time Asian Tour winner, who ended an eight-year title drought at the Yeangder Tournament Players in Taiwan in September.
"However, with four tournaments to play, I could climb to the top if I am in good form."
Winning the Order of Merit would be the icing on the cake for the 30-year-old Prom, who hopes to be the fourth Thai to emerge as Asia's money winner.
Thaworn Wiratchant, Thongchai Jaidee and Kiradech have won the prestigious trophy for a combined total of six times.
"I think I still have a chance [to win the Order of Merit]. I hope to have some good weekends ahead. I just have to be careful with playing too much though. I don't want to over push myself. I just want to let it happen and just enjoy my golf and see what happens," said Prom.
Chan Yin-shin of Taiwan won the prestigious title when it was established in 2009. Since then, three Thais have won, including Udorn Duangdecha (2010), Arnond Vongvanij (2012) and Prayad Marksaeg (2013). The 2011 tournament was cancelled due to flooding.