Molinari surges to clubhouse lead Hero Dubai Desert Classic.. Live scoreboard

 DP World Tour : Hero Dubai Desert Classic Tee Times Leaderboard

Today Francesco Molinari now 43, ranked a distant owgr 418, has posted an 8 birdie 1 bogey -7 65 to take the clubhouse lead at this prestigious Hero Dubai Desert Classic.

In 2018, he was on top of the golfing world....

.In 2018 Francesco "Frankie" Molinari was atop the golfing world.

He won the Open Championship at Carnoustie, paired with Tiger Woods in the final round, having won the BMW PGA Championship earlier n the year to beat Rory McIlroy, he shot a Sunday 62 to win the Quicken Loans on the PGA Tour by 8 shots

Francesco Molinari of Italy kisses the trophy after winning the British Open. (Peter Morrison/AP)

At the Ryder Cup in France he was undefeated, 5-0-0 beating Phil Mickelson in singles, then won the Race To Dubai. He was the European Tour Player of the Year, won the BBC World Sports Star of the Year and was awarded the Golden Collar of Sports Merit. 

He was still hot in 2019 winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Much is made of Tiger winning the 2019 Masters, but the fact is, Molinari,, stunning the American media, was the 54 hole leader at -13 two holes clear of Tiger and Tony Finau, putting on a masterclass of iron play and putting.

He still led after 11 holes until he found the water at 12 for a double, and then a bad break at the 15th where his approach clipped an overhanging tree branch, landing in Rae's Creek for another double to hand the lead to Tiger. Frankie finished T5,

Little has been heard from him since although he has been playing, he moved his family to California, to play on the PGA Tour in 2019, and  has become an Alternate Captain on the Ryder Cup team. 

more to follow..

Bryan Angus

PGA Tour: Six Canadians at American Express....Full TEE TIMES

 PGA Tour:  American Express Tee Times 

The PGA Tour is back at La Quinta in the California desert for the annual American Express, you old timers will remember it as " The Hope" when Bob Hope hosted it for so many years, bringing his Hollywood pals and American Presidents with him, it was always the first look at golf for the year on TV, lots of laughs, celebrities, pretty girls and some great golf from the best players, for example, Arnie won it 5 times.

It's different now, the pro-am is all corporate schmoozing, the field is decent, this year Scheffler who has been on holiday for 3 months has decided to play which will please the sponsor.

There are 6 Canadians. Mac Hughes begins his season after playing a few Fall season events to try and get in the top 60, he is at #73.

Sudarshan Yellamaraju was a creditable T13 last week in his Tour debut, Taylor Pendrith had a strong weekend T6, Nick Taylor T13 in defense of his title at the Sony, Adam Svensson , and AJ Ewart who has all weekend to practice after MC last week round out the contingent.

By the way Adam Hadwin who usually had a strong week here including his 59, begins his season on the Korn Ferry Tour in Bogota, Columbia, as he begins his season trying to regain his PGA Tour card. 

Bryan Angus

20 years and counting Rory McIlroy's love affair Hero Dubai Desert Classic...

 DP World Tour : Hero Dubai Desert Classic Tee Times Leaderboard

Rory McIlroy revealed his focus for the 2026 DP World Tour campaign as he targets his fifth Rolex Series title at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic.

The World Number Two became the sixth male player to achieve the career Grand Slam with his victory at the Masters last April during a year to remember for the 36-year-old.

He went on to win his second Amgen Irish Open crown of his career in September before helping Team Europe retain the Ryder Cup with victory at a raucous Bethpage Black in New York later that month.

McIlroy completed a stellar season by lifting his seventh Harry Vardon trophy, which confirmed his ranking as Europe’s Number One.

After a momentous year, McIlroy insisted he would not rest on his laurels and would bring enthusiasm to every event he tees up at, including at Emirates Golf Club.

"I think it's bringing that attitude and knowing my limitations and knowing, okay, this is somewhere I want to play," the Northern Irishman said.

"I've always said the results will take care of themselves if you do the other things right, and I think this year my focus is just doing the other things right. Then I feel like I'm a good enough golfer that then the results will take care of themselves."

He added: "I think I need to show up at tournaments with enthusiasm every single time.

"So playing in the places that I want to play, playing the tournaments I want to play. Not feeling like I'm at a tournament because I'm obligated or have to be there, but because I want to be there.

"And I said this last week, but finding joy in the process.  I've been coming here for 20 years.

"You just think about the amount of balls that I've hit and the amount of time I've spent on the range on my own. That starts to get tedious 20 years into a career.

"So it's like trying to find the joy in that. What I really found joy in I feel like at home is playing golf.

"I definitely spend more time on the golf course than on the practice range nowadays, and that's something I've started to really, really enjoy."

McIlroy continued his love affair with the Middle East during last week's Dubai Invitational.

He finished two shots behind winner Nacho Elvira for a share of third, which extended his extraordinary record in the United Arab Emirates to seven victories, eight runner-up finishes and 37 top-tens

This week also marks 20 years since making his bow at Emirates Golf Club as a 16-year-old amateur, as McIlroy sets his sights on a record-extending fifth Dallah Trophy.

"I love Dubai. It holds so many great memories for me, first of which was coming here as a 16-year-old, and playing in the Dubai Desert Classic for the first time as an amateur, and I played twice as an amateur," the 36-year-old said.

"In 2007, I made the cut, and that got me to world number one in the amateur rankings, and two years later, I won my first professional event here.

"So it's a lot of great memories. I've met a lot of great people along the way.

"Honestly, I've always felt like it was a perfect place to start the year."

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Hero Dubai Desert Classic....Roy McIlroy heads full field... TEE TIMES

DP World Tour : Hero Dubai Desert Classic Tee Times Leaderboard

Rory McIlroy headlines a 126 man DP World Tour field this week at the Emirates GC, for this version of the Hero Dubai Desert Classic.

Group 18 8.05am 10th  Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood. Tyrrell Hatton (defending)

Other Ryder Cup teammates Shane Lowry, Viktor Hovland, Luke Donald are also in the field as is last week's emotional winner, Spanish veteran, Nacho Elvira.

Confusion

As the line between LIV and the DP World Tour continues to be blurred beside Tyrell Hatton who has paid up his fines and is the defending champion, others like Patrick Reed continues to play, now Laurie Canter who just passed up on his PGA Tour card, Thomas Detry who just signed with LIV, Dustin Johnson, Joaquin Niemann, Victor Perez, Adrian Meronk, Tom McKibbon and David Puig are all in the field.

Meanwhile other members with full cards like Aaron Cockerill are not, while Eddie Pepperell who finished well behind Aaron in qualifying through Q School, is in the field on a sponsors exemption. 

Confusing isn't it...some would say not right.

Dubai is 9 hours ahead of EST so I will be covering this in the early hours here in frigid Toronto.

Bryan Angus

Chris Gotterup powers his way to Sony Open title...Final results

    PGA Tour : Sony Open Results

There was a fortnight in July 2025 in Britain when a strong stockily built American introduced himself to the world. We hadn't heard much about his college career, his golfing father Morten, or his win in an alternative PGA Tour event, One Flight Myrtle Beach Classic.

Chris Gotterup (Matt York A/P)

Chris Gotterup was #195 in the world, then he shocked us when he outplayed Rory to win the Genesis Scottish Open in North Berwick, before catching the train down to Royal Liverpool and placed 3rd behind Scott Scheffler at the Open Championship.

On Sunday he emerged from the pack after leader Davis Riley ran into bogey trouble mid round, with 3 birdies on the back nine for -6 64  (63 69 68 64) and a -16 264 total for the 2 shot win, and a spot at #17 in the world.

"I just felt like this week I was in a good frame of mind, happy to be here. I felt like I was in control of my brain which was the main thing. I drove it great and made some putts when it mattered."

Ryan Gerard who we saw on the DP World Tour when he flew to Mauritius to finish 2nd in a playoff to Jayden Schaper, thus getting into the world top 50 for the Masters, was 2nd 69 64 68 65, -14.

Canadians : None of Nick Taylor, Corey Conners or Adam Svensson count mount a charge at the lead on Sunday, here are all their scores.

Taylor Pendrith T6 69 68 68 64 -11 

Sudarshan Yellamaraju T13 67 67 72 65 -9

Nick Taylor T13  62 69 70 70 -13

Corey Conners T24  70 67 65 71 -7

Adam Svensson T40 65 70 67 73 -5

This week its the American Express at La Quinta where European Ryder Cup star Sepp Straka will defend his title.

Bryan Angus

Nacho Elvira outlasts McIlroy, Lowry to win Dubai Invitational... Final Results

  DP World Tour : Dubai Invitational Leaderboard

Spanish veteran Nacho Elvira with his wife and 2 girls waiting anxiously, emerged from a 5 player logjam, holding his nerve after making 3 bogey's around the turn to make a two putt par at the 18th for 69 -10 which was just enough for the win, after it looked like Rory and Shane Lowry were going to battle it out.

However after making 5 birdies in a row, Rory made a bogey 5 at the 18th from the back bunker, later Lowry who'd been in the lead all week, went long at the same hole, then splashed his bunker shot out and watched as it ran right off the green into the pond, resulting in a double bogey 6, and a T3 with Rory at -8.   more to follow,,,,,,

Nacho Elvira came out on top with a nerveless display during a roller coaster final round to claim his third DP World Tour title at the 2026 Dubai Invitational

No less than five players shared the lead on a chaotic Sunday at Dubai Creek Resort, where overnight leader Elvira cruised into a three-shot lead following a third birdie of the day at the seventh.

He left the door ajar when finishing his front nine with successive bogeys as Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Daniel Hillier and Marcus Armitage joined the Spaniard at the summit at -9 down the final stretch.

Lowry made his move with a birdie at the 15th, only to double bogey the last and spectacularly fall out of contention.

Hillier was the clubhouse leader at -9 but Elvira carded his first birdie of the back nine at the 17th to earn a one-shot lead down the last and calmly rolled a final par for a brilliant victory.

"It means the world," the 38-year-old said. "If you told me on Tuesday that I'd be winning this tournament I'd have never believed you.

"It's a dream come true, especially having the family here. I've always dreamed to have my kids walking up to me with a win and anything that happens after this, nothing compares to this.

"I knew at some point it was going to be difficult, especially with the great players playing in front of me. I somehow managed to make a par on ten, managed somehow to make a par on 11 and I guess I calmed down a little after this and stayed patient.

"To be honest with you, I wasn't nervous until the very last putt - the one-footer I had for the win. I knew what I needed to do, I knew I needed to be patient.

"I think there are so many positives from this week and I couldn't be more happier."

Frenchman Julien Guerrier bounced back from a double bogey at the second with seven birdies to sit in a share of third at -8 alongside Spain's David Puig, McIlroy and Lowry.

Armitage double-bogeyed the last to join Matt Wallace and Dane Thorbjørn Olesen at -6 while France's Antoine Rozner and South African duo Thriston Lawrence and Dylan Frittelli were one shot further back -5 to wrap up the top ten.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Taylor, Conners, Svensson, in contention on windy Waialae.... 54 hole results

   PGA Tour : Sony Open Tee Times Leaderboard 

The wind was the story as the field headed out on Saturday on the venerable par 70 Waialae CC gusting at 25mph NE, so scoring would be difficult, ball striking at a premium.

Getty Images

The best of the bunch turned out to be American Davis Riley who managed his ball well in the wind and birdied 4 of his last 7 holes for -3 67 to get to -12, two shots clear of the field with another windy Sunday ahead.

Riley is ranked #101 with 2 wins in his PGA Tour career said " The biggest thing in this wind is to hit your start lines and control your curvature and that's what I did, I hit some really good hold  shots against the wind."

England's Harry Hall 66, Americans Chris Gotterup 68, and Kevin Roy 69 are all in at -10 T2.

Nick Taylor had this to say after his T5 E 70 -9. " I grinded it out and gave myself a chance for tomorrow, that's all you can kind of give yourself.

Fellow Canadian Corey Conners, noted for his superb ball striking, got in with an outside chance by posting the day's best -5 65 -8 T8 " I like it when the wind blows here, I think it really puts a premium on ball striking. You really have to be able to control your ball, I hit some really  good shots today"

Adam Svensson who regained his Tour card via Q School is also T8 65,70 67 -8, so let's see how he finishes what has been a good start to his 2026 season.

Other Canadians

Taylor Pendrith T20 69 68 68 -5

Sudarshan Yellamaraju T32 67 67 72 -4

Bryan Angus

Taylor leads group T1 windy Sony Open, 36 hole results...TEE TIMES

   PGA Tour : Sony Open Tee Times Leaderboard 

Those who have travelled to the islands of Hawaii know there is rarely a day that goes by without at least a breeze as the westerly trade winds usually blow across the blue Pacific Ocean towards the America's.

On Friday the breeze was a wind 25kph NE and it blew all day for both the early and late waves.

Nick Taylor, of Canada, reacts on the 18th green during the first round of the Sony Open golf event at the Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt York)

Defending champion Nick Taylor followed his opening -8 62 in calm conditions with -1 69 in the worst of the afternoon wind and that was good enough to maintain his lead after 36 holes, joined now by 4 others.

Davis Riley 64, Kevin Roy, SH Kim 68, and the most regally named, Adrien Dumont de Chassart 67.

" The wind was strong and with some gusts, Taylor said. A lot of the holes were relatively crosswind, so it was tough to get yardages correctly. Sometimes it would hurt,, sometimes it would help. Almost had to time your shots correctly and get a little bit of luck too."

Canadians

The cut fell at -1, with AJ Ewart the only Canadian to miss it 72 71 +3

Sudarshan Yellamaraju T14 67 67 -6

Adam Svensson T22 65 70 -5

Taylor Pendrith T36 69 68 -3

Corey Conners T36 70 67 -3

The wind is expected to continue NE - E on the weekend 20- 28kph so expect scoring to be difficult.

Bryan Angus

Lowry and Elvira lead at windy Dubai Invitational ..36 hole results

 DP World Tour : Dubai Invitational Leaderboard

The Dubai Resort course had the reputation of being an easy test for the leading professionals as long as they are in the fairways.... or the wind blows.

Well the wind is up from yesterday, and so are the scores, where anything under par is good today. For example Rory McIlroy had an opening effortless 66, is +2 today through 14 holes.

His best friend and playing partner Shane Lowry is -2 and at -4 has the lead, but this field is bunched mid way through round 2..

Shane Lowry and Nacho Elvira produced brilliant rounds of 68 in windy conditions to share a two-shot lead at the halfway stage of the 2026 Dubai Invitational.

The Irishman began the day three shots behind good friend and career Grand Slam champion Rory McIlroy, but some stunning iron play and clutch putting saw him overhaul his playing partner at Dubai Creek Resort.

Lowry is aiming to secure his first DP World Tour title since winning the 2022 BMW PGA Championship and he showcased his quality with five birdies and two bogeys.

Spaniard Elvira surged into contention thanks to four birdies in his final six holes for a matching 68 - the best rounds of the day - to get to -5

“Very happy. It was hard. It was tricky,” said Lowry. “If I play golf like that for the rest of the season in that frame of mind, I’ll be pretty good.

“The first tournament of the year you don’t know what to expect. So going out there in the last group now on Saturday is nice, and keep it going and we’ll see what happens.”

McIlroy regained his overnight one-shot advantage when he birdied the third to reach -6

That lead was briefly extended to two when Antoine Rozner's early birdie burst was offset by a double-bogey, but McIlroy dropped a shot at the sixth.

A skewed chip left a difficult par putt for McIlroy to save par at the ninth and when it slid by, he was in a two-way tie for the lead at -4

Lowry opened with birdie-birdie for the second day running and despite a bogey at the fifth, he picked up the shot at the very next hole. A bogey at the ninth saw him slip back one, but he responded immediately with a lovely birdie putt at the tenth to rejoin the lead.

None of the trio could jump ahead on their own as they reached the turn, which saw Marcus Armitage increase the leadership group to four.

However, by the time McIlroy and Lowry finished the 14th hole, the latter was in the solo lead.

Armitage dropped a shot at the ninth - his last - and McIlroy found the water at the 14th as the trio slipped back to -3

That left Lowry on his own at the top. He was briefly joined by Elvira and McIlroy when the latter rolled in a 46-foot putt at the 16th for birdie, but Lowry followed suit from 31 feet to maintain his one-shot lead at -5.

McIlroy found the water for the fourth time at the 17th as he finished with back-to-back bogeys to sit three behind the joint leaders.

Armitage and Spain's David Puig were tied for third at -3 while McIlroy, Lawrence, Rozner and Spain's Angel Ayora were one shot further back at -2

American Ryggs Johnston recorded the first hole-in-one of 2026 when his aced the 218-yard par-three eighth with a six iron.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Taylor 62 leads Sony Open..18 hole results.. TEE TIMES

  PGA Tour : Sony Open Tee Times Leaderboard

Nick Taylor has kicked off his 2026 season and the defence of his Sony Open title in style !

With a barrage of pinpoint irons, a hot putter and birdies on 3 of the par 3's he got out early before the trade wind arrived in the afternoon on the Waialae CC and posted a bogey free -8 62 to take the lead along with American Kevin Roy.

Nick won here last year with a long chip in on the 72nd to force a playoff in which he was victorious.

Considering how much the guys on the DP World Tour play in the Fall, the Canadian has been on holiday for 4 months since the Tour Championship August 24, 2025. He did make a short trip to Mexico then accepted an invitation from Gary Player to compete in the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa.

" I think we got lucky with the weather, I was expecting more wind. I hit it great, but this course fits my eye"

Four players are T3 with 63 including last year's surprise star American Chris Gotterup who won the Genesis Open in Scotland, then was right in contention at the Open.

Vijay Singh is 62 now, he used a life time money exemption, made 2 double bogey's and still shot -2 68.

Other Canadians

Adam Svensson T10 -5 65

Sudarshan Yellamaraju T29 -3 67

Taylor Pendrith T59 -1 69

Corey Conners T80  E 70

AJ Ewart T101 +2  72

Bryan Angus

Roger Sloan 2nd place The Bahamas Golf Classic... Full results

 Korn Ferry Tour : The Bahamas Golf Classic....Results

Canada's Roger Sloan lost his PGA Tour card in 2024, however he has begun his 2026 season on the Korn Ferry Tour in style after finishing at #131 on the points list here in 2025.

He co-led this windy Bahamas Golf Classic after 36 holes in his 160th appearance on this tour, and he finished strong with a chip in eagle and a birdie in his last 4 holes to finish 64 65 68 67 -24 for 2nd place, his best finish since winning the 2023 Utah Championship.

Ironically he was the 10th alternative this week, and has won on this tour twice.

The winner was a bogey free Taylor Dickson with a career best 67 62 67 65 -27, his 3rd career win on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Dickson was demoted after a poor 2025 year on the PGA Tour finishing 174th after 26 starts.

Other Canadians

Ben Silverman T51 68 68 68 71 -13

Myles Creighton and Drew Nesbitt both M/C

Next week the field remains in the Bahamas with the Great Abaco Classic which Canadian Sudarshan Yellamaraju won last year paving his way to the PGA Tour this year.

Bryan Angus

Rory has the lead Dubai Invitational....Full 18 hole results

DP World Tour : Dubai Invitational Leaderboard

 Rory McIlroy is off to a fast start to his DP World Tour 2026 season posting a 31,35 -5 66 early this morning at this version of the Dubai Invitational, to hold the clubhouse lead with the late wave currently on course.

Players commented that the Dubai Creek Resort course was "easy, or quite gettable" as long as you keep it in the fairways.

Rory McIlroy declared his opening round of 66 as a "nice way to start the year" as he held a one-shot lead at the 2026 Dubai Invitational.

The World Number Two made a rapid start with seven birdies and a bogey after ten holes to send a daunting message to the rest of the field as he led by three shots at -6

His momentum stalled as he carded a dropped shot and seven pars to close his first round of the year in 66 and take the clubhouse lead at -5.

Matt Wallace rolled in four straight birdies around the turn to surge ahead at -7, but two dropped shots and a double bogey saw him slip down the leaderboard.

Scotland's Connor Syme 67 and Spaniard David Puig 67 were McIlroy's closest rivals at -4

"It was good. I got off to a great start, played a very good first nine," McIlroy said. 

"Then the wind got up a little bit and felt like that front nine, which was our second nine, was the trickier one.

"I made a silly bogey on three and then didn't capitalise on the par-five after that.

"So I felt like I left a few out on that side, but I played a really good nine holes of golf. Overall, a nice way to start the year."

Wallace endured a roller coaster card of an eagle, six birdies, three dropped shots and a double bogey to finish to sit in a T5 at -3, Lindell double bogeyed the last in his 68, while French pair Guerrier and Antoine Rozner and Spaniard Angel Ayora were also at -3.

There was a minute's silence held at 1.30pm local time for the 40 victims of the Crans-Montana fire during New Year celebrations, which included rising Italian talent Emanuele Galeppini, who was about to start his tenure as Junior Captain at Dubai Creek Resort.

Black ribbons were worn by players, caddies and DP World Tour staff as a mark of respect.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus

Bryan Angus..

PGA Tour: Nick Taylor to defend Sony Open : Full Tee times

 PGA Tour : Sony Open Tee Times

With all the drama of the Fall Season over, and Christmas / New Years done and dusted, it's the first full field event on the PGA Tour of 2026, the Sony Open. 

This will be the last time Sony will provide the sponsorship,, and with re-structuring talks underway, it may be the last year for the event all together.

Nick Taylor defends his title and he leads the 6 Canadians including rookies AJ Ewart and Sudarshan Yellamaraju.

Corey Conners, Taylor Pendrith and Adam Svensson round out the group. Mac Hughes is not in the field.

Rory, Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood are all in Dubai this week but there is a strong DP World Tour contingent in this field, including the 10 who won dual membership last season.

Click on my TEE TIMES logo above for the full field.

Bryan Angus.

McIlroy and Lowry paired TEE TIMES Dubai Invitational...

 DP World Tour : Dubai Invitational Leaderboard Tee Times

Here we go again after the Christmas break the DP World Tour has gathered again for fortnight in Dubai. The week its the Dubai Invitational with just 60 pros and 60 amateurs over 72 holes.

Rory and Shane Lowry are paired, with defending champion and World #3 Tommy Fleetwood paired with Ryan Fox.

The Ams play 54 holes paired with the pros, than the pros sort out the winner over the final 18 holes on Sunday.

For full tee times click on my leaderboard above.

Welcome back !!

Bryan Angus

DP World Tour resumes in Dubai....full details

 The DP World Tour will visit five countries across seven events as the Race to Dubai resumes with the International Swing.

One of five Global Swings which form Phase One of the schedule, the series of tournaments includes a Dubai double header to the start the new year.

As with the past two seasons on the DP World Tour, the schedule comprises three distinct phases, beginning with the Global Swings followed by the Back 9, with the campaign culminating with the DP World Tour Play-Offs in November.

Two years on from its inaugural edition, the Dubai Invitational returns to Dubai Creek Resort for the start of a new calendar year on the DP World Tour. Tommy Fleetwood is back to defend his title. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry are also in the field. It is a no cut 60 pros, 60 amateurs event over 72 holes.

The first of back-to-back tournaments in the Emirate, the International Swing continues with the Hero Dubai Desert Classic at Emirates Golf Club - the first Rolex Series event of the season. Last year Tyrrell Hatton was the winner. This year of note, former World #1 Dustin Johnson who left for the guaranteed money on LIV in it's inaugural season, is making a DP World Tour debut.

To view the Dubai Invitational field in full, click here.

To view the Hero Dubai Desert Classic field, click here.

From there, the action heads to Bahrain for the third edition of the Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship where Laurie Canter made good on his return to DP World Tour from LIV last year before the Qatar Masters where Haotong Li won, takes place, reinforcing its status as a key fixture on Tour.

As was the case last year, there is then a one-week interval, with the Magical Kenya Open marking the start of three consecutive events in Africa. Jacques Kruyswijk broke through win his win in 2025.

The Investec South African Open Championship won by Dylan Naidoo then takes place at new host Stellenbosch Golf Club before the Swing concludes at Houghton Golf Club with the Joburg Open where Scotsman Calum Hill was the victor, with both events co-sanctioned with the Sunshine Tour.

What is at stake during the Swing?

As well as silverware and valuable Race to Dubai and Official World Golf Ranking points, there is plenty to play for on the International Swing.

As for each Global Swing, the leading player is crowned Swing Champion, qualifes for each of the Back 9 events and earns a US$200,000 bonus.

The player who finishes highest in the Swing Rankings and is not already exempt will join the field for the second Rolex Series event of the season - the Genesis Scottish Open.

The Investec South African Open Championship will also offer an invite to the Masters Tournament for the champion, while the top three players not already exempt will earn a place in the field for The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale via The Open Qualifying Series.

What's to follow?

With the International Swing through to March, there is a one-week hiatus before the five-event Asian Swing starts at the Hainan Classic in China.

The Asian Swing will be followed by the European Swing and Closing Swing before the Back 9 leads into the DP World Tour Play-Offs.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Nick Taylor defends Sony Open, Full Field with 6 Canadians

 PGA Tour : Sony Open Field

The venerable Waialae GC, par 70, 7044 yards will open the 2026 PGA Tour season on Thursday, sponsored by Sony for the last time.

Canada's Nick Taylor will attempt to successfully defend his title, he leads Corey Conners, Taylor Pendrith, Adam Svensson and rookies AJ Ewart, and Sudarshan Yellamaraju.

Russell Henley #5, JJ Spaun #6, Robert MacIntyre #7, Hideki Matsuyama #17 are the owgr top ranked players.

Also taking advantage of winning dual membership from the DP World Tour, Dan Brown, Haotong Li, Keita Nakajima, John Parry, Kristoffer Reitan, Adrien Saddier, and Jordan Smith

England's Laurie Canter left LIV in 2024 saying he wanted to play his way into the majors and Ryder Cup consideration on the DP World Tour. He had a strong 2025 playing his way into the top 10 that qualified for dual membership with the PGA Tour and all the money on offer there.

However he declined to return to LIV for the easier guaranteed money on offer there. He is the father of two young daughters in Bath, England and said that flying back and forth to the USA 30 times a year was not the way he wanted to live.

He also rejoined his life long pals Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter on their LIV team.

This is the last year Sony will sponsor the event, and as I mentioned yesterday, the PGA Tour is considering a re structure of the schedule, possibly eliminating the two Hawaiian tournaments that traditionally begin the year.

Bryan Angus

PGA Tour, Sentry Open is cancelled, is the Sony Open next to follow.

 PGA Tour : The Sentry January 9-12 : cancelled

When preparing my annual coverage of the PGA Tour, which has been on holiday since the Tour Championship, August 21-24, I was reminded of a Press release back in October that due to the drought on Maui and a water dispute browning out the course, the annual Sentry on the famous Plantation GC on Kapalua had been cancelled.

You may remember it was a restricted field reward originally, for winners on the previous year's PGA Tour. Players would often bring their families for a fortnight's working man's holiday in the islands with some lovely prize money thrown in.

Last year it was selected as a signature event with the top 50 now invited as well, and what seemed to me to be an obscene $20,000,000 for what was really just a nice warm up event in paradise.

Nick Taylor (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

So now the season will begin next week at the Sony Open with Canada's Nick Taylor defending his title.

Here's where the waters of the blue Pacific's  gets a bit murky.

This is the last year of Sony's sponsorship. Apparently staging the traditional two Hawaiian events are the most expensive dates on Tour, citing their remote location, and sparse resort crowds on Kapalua, and despite the Sony's proximity to Honolulu it has never been considered a revenue maker either.

The Tour's big draw Scottie Scheffler won't begin his season until the American Express January 22 -25 at La Quinta.

New CEO, Brian Rolapp and his Strategic Sports Group are in discussion to restructure the Tour schedule, it is not my intention to delve into all of the proposals, however it is apparent that eliminating the two Hawaiian events is a possibility.

The entire field for this year's Sony Open has not yet been published but there are a record seven Canadians with 2026 cards.

Taylor, along with Corey Conners, Taylor Pendrith, Mac Hughes are joined by Sudarshan Yellamaraju, Adam Svensson and AJ Ewart are all fully qualified.

Adam Hadwin and Ben Silverman have lost their cards but will receive some invites as past champions or performance in the "reshuffle"categories

Bryan Angus

All you need to know for DP World Tour 2026...

 As a new year dawns on the DP World Tour in 2026, here are at some of the things to watch out for.

The return of the Dubai Invitational

Serving as the opening event of the Race to Dubai’s International Swing, the second edition of the Dubai Invitational marks the start of the action on the DP World Tour in 2026.

Held at Dubai Creek Resort, a European Tour Destinations venue, Ryder Cup hero Tommy Fleetwood is returning to defend his title.

The reigning FedEx Cup Champion and eight-time DP World Tour winner delivered a dramatic birdie–birdie finish at the inaugural edition in 2024 to edge out Ryder Cup team-mate Rory McIlroy on the final day.

The event includes a three-day Pro-Am team competition before a professionals-only final day, bringing together 60 DP World Tour professionals and 60 amateurs.

Every week counts

Featuring a minimum of 42 Race to Dubai tournaments in 25 different countries, the schedule will once again comprise three distinct phases.

Beginning with five Global Swings followed by the Back 9, the season then culminates with the DP World Tour Play-Offs in November.

Each Global Swing has its own identity and its own champion, with exemptions into Rolex Series events and the second phase of the season - the Back 9 - also available.

Members are competing for a record total prize fund of $157.5 million (outside the Major Championships) on golf’s global Tour next season.

The Rolex Series

As in previous years, the consistent thread throughout the course of the season will be the five Rolex Series events – the premium category of events on the DP World Tour.

In 2026 these will be: the Hero Dubai Desert Classic (January), the Genesis Scottish Open – co-sanctioned with the PGA TOUR (July), the BMW PGA Championship (September), the Abu Dhabi Championship (November) and the season-ending DP World Tour Championship (November).

The new events

While the Race to Dubai schedule is largely in line with recent campaigns, there is a brand-new event in 2026.

The Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship, the first tournament on the European Swing, will take place from May 7-10 at Real Club de Golf El Prat in Barcelona.

Its introduction follows the agreement announced last summer that the 2031 Ryder Cup will be played at Camiral in Catalunya, with Spain becoming the first continental European country to host the biennial contest twice.

In addition, the PGA TOUR’s Corales Puntacana Championship in the Dominican Republic features on the Race to Dubai for the first time from July 16-19.

Alongside the ISCO Championship from July 9-12, it is one of two back-to-back events in the schedule where DP World Tour members will have access to playing on the PGA TOUR.

The new and returning venues

During the International Swing, the Investec South African Open Championship will return to Stellenbosch GC for the first time since 1999.

El Prat will host a DP World Tour event for the first time since the 2015 Open de España presented by Madrid.

Also part of the European Swing, the the Austrian Alpine Open presented by Kitzbühel Tirol is moving to Golfclub Kitzbühel-Schwarzsee-Reith.

Since the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone GC, the Italian Open has changed venues annually and this year sees it return to Circolo Golf Torino for the fourth time and first since back-to-back editions in 2013 and 2014.

During the Closing Swing, the third edition of the Danish Golf Championship will take place on the island of Funen, with Great Northern the host venue.

Again forming part of the Back 9, the Amgen Irish Open will be played at Trump International Golf Links Ireland, Doonbeg, for the first time from September 10-13.

Shortly after, the FedEx Open de France is slated to return to Le Golf National after the 2018 Ryder Cup venue underwent major renovation works.

McIlroy targets Monty's record

After topping the Race to Dubai Rankings Delivered by DP World for a seventh time last year, Rory McIlroy has Colin Montgomerie's record haul of eight firmly in his sights.

The Northern Irishman enjoyed a remarkable year in 2025, achieving the career Grand Slam with a memorable Masters win, tasting victory at the Amgen Irish Open and playing a key role in Europe's historic away Ryder Cup triumph at Bethpage.

A winner of the Harry Vardon Trophy for the last four years, he is ahead of Seve Ballesteros' tally of six and appears intent on climbing to the top of the all-time list.

"It seems within touching distance now," he said. "I was the first European to win the Grand Slam and I'd love to be the most successful European in terms of winning Order of Merits and season-long races.

"I've hopefully got a few more good years left in me, and hopefully I can catch (Montgomerie) and surpass him."

The road to the Majors

Barring the Ryder Cup, nothing gets a golf fan excited quite like the Majors.

The season of golf's four biggest individual prizes will once again begin at Augusta National for the Masters Tournament in April, before Aronimink hosts the US PGA Championship, Shinnecock Hills stages the U.S. Open and The Open Championship visits Royal Birkdale.

As part of a new initiative announced by Augusta National and The R&A last summer, the winner of the Investec South African Open Championship will earn a spot at The Masters, while there will be three places in the field – to golfers not already exempt – at The 154th Open available as part of the Open Qualifying Series.

There is one place available for Royal Birkdale for players competing at the Italian Open, while three places will be available via the Genesis Scottish Open.

The first five DP World Tour members and any DP World Tour members tying for fifth place, not otherwise exempt, in the top 20 of the Race to Dubai Rankings on completion of the BMW International Open will also earn a spot at The Open.

As with the past couple of years, the leading three players on the Asian Swing Rankings will earn exempt status for the US PGA Championship.

Players out to shine

You already know about the DP World Tour's established superstars but what about those who might make a name for themselves this season?

Nine players from last year's HotelPlanner Tour cohort of graduates made it to the season finale in Dubai, with three of those - Kristoffer Reitan, John Parry and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen - earning dual membership on the PGA TOUR for the 2026 season.

Martin Couvra, another product of the HotelPlanner Tour in 2024, was named Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year after making his DP World Tour breakthrough..

But it is not just rookies looking to seize the opportunity, with an array of international talent from Qualifying School including Canada's Aaron Cockerill, hoping to emulate Jacob Skov Olesen in playing their way to the season climax in Dubai.

There have already been three first-time winners so far on the 2026 Race to Dubai, with Neergaard-Petersen, David Puig and Jayden Schaper all winning silverware. After there were 19 first-time winners last season, how many will we see this year?

Changes to membership structure

In effect for the 2026 season, there are a number of changes to the DP World Tour's membership structure - designed to provide greater schedule certainty and more balanced playing opportunities. They will also make gaining the 2027 Tour card more difficult.

Among these, are:

• The cut-off to retain a full card through the 2026 Race to Dubai Rankings (for the 2027 season) will be reduced from the top 110 to the top 100

• The number of cards available to top finishers on the HotelPlanner Tour will be reduced from 20 to 15

• The DP World Tour cards available at the 2026 Qualifying School will be reduced from the top 20 and ties to the top 15 and ties.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)