Eight Major Champions Confirmed To Tee-Up PIF Saudi International

10 months ago by Comments Off on Eight Major Champions Confirmed To Tee-Up PIF Saudi International

Eight major championship winners will be heading to Saudia Arabia early next month for the sixth hosting of the US$5million PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers.

The season-ending Asian Tour International Series event is being held from the 4th to 7th December and for a first time at the famed Riyadh Golf Club in the Saudi capital.

Major champions include five former Masters winners Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia, Charles Schwartzel, Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed and they will be joined by US Open champ Graeme McDowell and Open Championship winners Louis Oostuizen and Aussie Cameron Smith.

Garcia was in golf headlines yesterday with confirmation from the DP World Tour he has paid an outstanding fine placed on him by the Tour in joining LIV Golf, and thus making him available for 2025 European Ryder Cup selection.

Garcia said: “I’ve had some strong finishes in this tournament before, so I’m excited to return, especially since this will be my first time experiencing Riyadh. I’ve heard amazing things about the course and the city, and it’s inspiring to see golf growing in this region. It’s been a solid year for me, with a win in Andalucia, finishing third in the individual LIV Golf standings, and a T12 at the US Open, I’m hoping to finish the year on a high note in Saudi Arabia.”

Johnson and McDowell are former winners of the tournament when held north or Riyadh at Economic City and the course laid out along the shores of the Red Sea.

Also in the field is World No. 16 Tyrrell Hatton and still fresh from success alongside his father at last month’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on the DP World Tour while he claimed a maiden individual LIV Golf title in Nashville earlier in the summer. The Ryder Cup star also recorded a second-place finish at this month’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, and placed sixth at last week’s DP World Tour Championship in Duba

Hatton said: “I am really excited to visit Riyadh for the first time and to be part of the Asian Tour’s season-ending event. I’ve been playing really well the last couple of months as my results are showing, so I really want to keep the momentum going through to the end of the year.  I finished tied 6th when I played in PIF Saudi International in 2021, so I am hoping to be able to improve on that and finish my season on a high.”

Mexican-born Abraham Ancer will be defending his title and will compete alongside PGA Tour and DP World Tour winners, Kevin Na and Branden Grace, as well as Talor Gooch, the 2023 LIV Individual champion.

Other notable players include Adrian Meronk, a four-time winner on the DP World Tour, David Puig, currently lying seventh on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, Joaquin Niemann, winner of the 2024 LIV Golf event at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City earlier this year, Peter Uihlein, winner of the recent International Series England in August and Dean Burmester, champion at the 2024 LIV Golf Miami.

Boosting one of the best fields all season in any tournament are the winning members of the Ripper GC team who claimed the 2024 LIV Golf Team Championship: Lucas Herbert, a past winner on both the PGA and DP World Tour, and Matt Jones, a two-time PGA Tour Champion, Marc Leishman, six-time PGA Tour winner and the aforementioned, Cameron Smith.

All four players are contesting this week’s BMW PGA Championship and next week’s ISPS Australian Open, and with Herbert having captured last week’s NSW Open Championship in Australia.

And not forgetting the Asian Tour and The International Series’ stars including John Catlin who currently leads both the Asian Tour Order of Merit and the International Series Rankings, with Richard T. Lee close behind in second place. Other top contenders for the top positions include Ben Campbell, Lee Chieh-Po, and Michael Maguire, who have all delivered excellent performances this season on the Asian Tour.

And for the first time this year, the tournament will finish on the Saturday in order to align with the Saudi weekend, as players aim to claim the tournament’s US$1million first prize, the most lucrative title on the Asian Tour.

As well, the tournament is the last of 10 elevated events on The International Series calendar, the Asian Tour-sanctioned tournaments that offer a direct pathway for players from all over the world onto the LIV Golf League.

The champion of the season-ending International Series Rankings will secure a spot on the 2025 LIV Golf League roster.

In addition, the top 32 eligible players at the top of The International Series Rankings, and all 2024 Asian Tour champions, will qualify for places in the field for this year’s innovative LIV Golf Promotions event, which will take place at Riyadh Golf Club from 12-14 December.

Additionally, the 2024 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion will be guaranteed a place within the top four of the OWGR Federation Ranking, a system used by both the PGA Championship and The Open.

The PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers is now firmly established on the global golf calendar. Strengthened by Golf Saudi’s ambition to grow golf in Saudi Arabia, cultivate the global growth of the game, and help lower barriers to entry, Golf Saudi is dedicated to ensuring the game can be accessed and enjoyed by everyone. Saudi Arabia’s golfing landscape, backed by the Saudi Golf Federation, has significantly advanced in recent years with Golf Saudi instrumental in nurturing top talent and attracting some of the world’s leading golfers.



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