"Irish eyes are Smilin' this week Amgen Irish Open...

The Back 9 continues on the DP World Tour with an elite field gathered at The K Club for the Amgen Irish Open. 

edit >>> With the PGA Tour regular season over, the focus of the golfing world is on the DP World Tour for the next fortnight with the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth next week to follow.

McIlroy leads home charge

The island of Ireland's open always draws a large and knowledgeable crowd and this year is no different with a host of home stars giving the fans plenty to cheer. Rory McIlroy heads the field, with the World Number Two chasing a second Irish Open title after his victory at The K Club in 2016 and returns to the event for the first time as a career Grand Slam winner following his triumph at the Masters Tournament. Fellow Major Champions and winners of this event Shane Lowry and Pádraig Harrington also tee it up, as does a third Amgen ambassador in Seamus Power.

Major winners aplenty

The three home favourites are not the only winners of golf's four biggest events in the field this week with five other Major Champions teeing it up on Thursday. Italian Francesco Molinari makes it four Champion Golfers of the Year in the field, while the addition of Danny Willett, and Patrick Reed means we have three winners of the Green Jacket at The K Club. Add in Brooks Koepka's three US PGA Championships and two U.S. Opens and that is a total of 18 Major wins on the tee this week.

Back at The K Club

The K Club is one of the most storied venues in Irish golf and since 1995 has hosted 13 European Opens, two Irish Opens and a Ryder Cup. 

The Club, founded in 1832, boasts two courses, the 'inland links' Palmer South and the Palmer North, both named after their designer, the great Arnold Palmer. The South played host to the 2004, 2006 and 2007 European Opens, won by Retief Goosen, Stephen Dodd and Colin Montgomerie, but it is perhaps 2006 Ryder Cup venue the North which is best known. As well as hosting the Ryder Cup, it has seen Major winners such as Bernhard Langer, Darren Clarke and Michael Campbell win the European Open. McIlroy and Vincent Norrman have also won the last two editions of this event here, while Europe's 18½-9½ victory over the United States will forever be its most famous moment. We will be back here for the Amgen Irish Open again in 2027.

Inside the field

The Major Champions may take a lot of the headlines but the field this week is stacked from top to bottom. Tyrrell Hatton joins Ryder Cup team-mates McIIroy and Lowry, while Europe Captain Luke Donald along with Vice Captain Francesco Molinari add to the anticipation for golf's biggest event in the coming weeks. 

All five winners of the International Swing tee it up with five wins between them this season and they join 20 other victors from the 2025 campaign. Throw in PGA TOUR regulars Jhonattan Vegas, Erik van Rooyen and Ryan Gerard - winner of the Barracuda Championship - and the fans are in for a treat.

A sustainable event

Green Drive sees a host of on-site activities available to reduce waste and encourage the use of public transport but it is also breaking new ground through the event broadcast as the Amgen Irish Open will be the first sporting event in Ireland to power its live television production and global broadcast exclusively with green hydrogen. 

Hydrogen Power Units (HPUs), will replace traditional diesel generators, producing zero CO2 or particulate emissions, with water being the only by-product.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)