Following 42 events played across five different continents, the DP World Tour enters its end-of-the-season playoffs.
The DP World Tour Playoffs are here as this week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship welcomes the top 70 golfers from the Tour’s season-long-standings. From here, the top 50 within the standings will advance to next week’s DP World Tour Championship at the Jumeirah Golf Estates.
Yas Links plays host this week for the 19th edition of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. The last edition was held in January of 2023 as this is the first season this event is part of the DP World Tour Playoffs.
The Field
As this week hosts a limited field of just 70 golfers, a star studded attendance is in store.
Rory McIlroy headlines the field this week in Abu Dhabi. He has four runner-up finishes at this event in his career. McIlroy is seeking his sixth Order of Merit (awarded to the top finisher of the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai standings.) McIlroy continues his chase of Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight.
Joining McIlroy this week are many of the World’s best. The likes of Tyrrell Hatton, Joaquin Niemann, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, Adam Scott, Min Woo Lee and Robert MacIntyre help headline the list of PGA Tour and LIV Tour regulars seeking victory.
The DP World Tour regulars are headlined by the likes of Thriston Lawrence, Rasmus Hojgaard, Matteo Manassero, Niklas Norgaard, Jesper Svensson and Rikuya Hoshino who come into this week within the top ten of the Race to Dubai standings.
Jon Rahm qualified for this event following a strong finish the DP World Tour season following his return to European golf but will not be in attendance this week. Ludvig Aberg and Billy Horschel are the other notable absentees who are qualified but will not be playing.
As previously mentioned, following this event, the top 50 of the Race to Dubai standings will qualify for next week’s end-of-the-season DP World Tour Championship.
As it currently sits, Davi Ravetto, Aaron Cockerill, Paul Waring, Conner Syme and Andy Sullivan are the first five names in as they sit 46th through 50th respectively.
Keita Nakajima, Bernd Wiesberger, Calum Hill, Grant Forrest and Matthieu Pavon are the first five out as the rank 51st through 55th respectively.
On top of playing for next week, the top ten of the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai standings that are not otherwise qualified, will receive full exemption to the PGA Tour next season.
The rankings currently sit at Lawrence, Hojgaard, Manassero, Norgaard, Svensson, Hoshino, Sebastian Soderberg, Jordan Smith, Guido Migliozzi and Romain Langasque. Tom McKibbin is the first name out but is right behind Langasque.
Victor Perez is the defending champion of this event, winning by one stroke over Lee and Soderberg back in January of 2023. He will not be back this week to defend his title.
Other former winners of this event teeing it up this week include Hatton (2021,) Lowry (2019,) Fleetwood (2017 & 2018) and Pablo Larrazabal (2014.)
The Course
The Yas Links Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, UAE is a masterful piece of golf architecture.
It is a links-style golf course that sits in the heart of the UAE and prior to its completion, the simple idea of such a course was unfathomable.
Now, Yas Links, which has hosted this event since 2022, offers an accurate resemblance to a true links course in the desert of the Middle East.
It was designed by Kyle Phillips, the mastermind behind courses such as Kingsbarn and Dundonald Golf Links.
Opened in 2010, it plays as a par-72 at 7,425 yards.
This course will test every aspect of the elite golfer’s game.
All but one of the par-three holes featured this week have water in play.
On top of that, the closing hole comes in at nearly 650 yards with water running all the way down the left side of the fairway. A true nerve-wracking finishing hole for anyone looking to close this event out come Sunday.
The fairways this week feature rolling hills and lead to seashore greens.
The designers of this state-of-the-art facility were able to expand the existing shoreline and then in turn, used the dredged sand to build an ‘interesting’ variety of dune formations.
Weather can be a factor here as this golf course sits along the coastline.
Winds were a factor in the 2022 playing of this event as the winner, Thomas Pieters, was the only player to finish in double-digits under par. Last year, Perez emerged victorious at -18.
The Weather
As of the time of writing this, we could not ask for a better four days of golf. There is a zero-percent chance of precipitation across all four days as temperatures will range between 89-and-90 degrees throughout the week as well. Winds will range from nine-to-11 miles-per-hour this week as well. In all, ideal conditions for the World’s best to battle it out in the desert.
Key Stats
Strokes Gained: Tee to Green (SG: TTG)
Strokes Gained: Approach (SG: APP)
Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (SG: OTT) / Average Driving Distance
Scrambling
Strokes Gained Putting (SG: PUTT) / Three Putt Avoidance
Par 5 Average Scoring
Strokes Gained: Around the Green (SG: ATG)
Birdie or Better Percentage
Bogey Avoidance
Betting Card
Rasmus Hojgaard (+2000)
It was roughly a year ago when twin brother Nikolai came to the desert to take down the World’s elite to claim the DP World Tour Championship. Now, it’s Rasmus’ turn to cement his name. It wasn’t that long ago that Hojgaard did just that, chasing down McIlroy on home soil to claim the Amgen Irish Open in dramatic fashion. On top of that, Hojgaard plays desert golf almost better than anyone. Earlier this season he placed T11th at the Dubai Invitational, T11th at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, second at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship, T8th at the Bahrain Championship and T6th at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters. Many of those finishes came with many of the World’s best in attendance. He also placed T4th in his last outing at the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucia Masters and T13th at the FedEx Open de France. He is also third on Tour in birdie or better percentage, 12th in all three of SG: TTG, average driving distance and SG: PUTT, 15th in SG: APP, 27th in bogey avoidance, 36th in SG: ATG, 38th in SG: OTT, 39th in three-putt avoidance, 41st in par-five average scoring and 58th in scrambling. The 23-year-old is a five time DP World Tour winner for a reason. I’m all in.
Thriston Lawrence (+4000)
I’ve been all over Lawrence nearly this entire season and he has done everything except win. He has nine top tens on the season with six top fives. Five of those top-five finishes were also runner-up performances. He’s simply knocking on the door and the chance to claim his fifth DP World Tour title this season is running out. The form as of late isn’t perfect but it’s not bad either. We also can’t forget what he did at The Open where he finished solo fourth, of course, on a links style course. He also had a runner-up in the desert earlier this season at the Dubai Invitational. Lawrence is currently first on Tour in SG: PUTT, sixth in birdie or better percentage, tenth in par-five average scoring, 14th in scrambling, 16th in SG: OTT, 20th in three-putt avoidance, 22nd in bogey avoidance, 47th in SG: TTG, 57th in average driving distance, 70th in SG: APP and 138th in SG: ATG.
Jesper Svensson (+9000)
Svensson is a name I’ve had circled for this event (and next week honestly) for some time. He’s currently seventh on Tour in average driving distance, tenth in birdie or better percentage, 16th in par-five average scoring, 33rd in SG: OTT, 38th in SG: PUTT, 41st in scrambling, 47th in bogey avoidance, 58th in SG: TTG, 78th in three-putt avoidance, 89th in SG: APP and 105th in SG: ATG. Svensson played well in the desert to start the season. He placed T2nd at the Bahrain Championship, T16th at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters, T31st at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic and T47th at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship. He won the Porsche Singapore Classic this season. He recently placed second at the D+D REAL Czech Masters and fifth at the Betfred British Masters as well.
Frederic LaCroix (+15000)
Desert golf earlier this year is where we were introduced to LaCroix. He placed third at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship and T4th at the Bahrain Championship. He got his maiden DP World Tour victory not too long ago at the Danish Golf Championship. Since, the form has not been great but he did place T17th at the Amgen Irish Open. LaCroix is currently 11th on Tour in SG: TTG, 14th in SG: OTT, 25th in average driving distance, 27th in both scrambling and birdie or better percentage, 28th in SG: ATG, 47th in SG: APP, 50th in bogey avoidance, 61st in par-five average scoring, 132nd in SG: PUTT and 157th in three-putt avoidance.
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