Down Under Has A New Golfing Hero After McKinney Secures DP World Tour Status.

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Connor McKinney will have wasted little time arranging his return flight home to Australia so as he can prepare for his up-coming, back-to-back tournament debut on the DP World Tour.

McKinney will be in celebration mode after superbly keeping his composure and very much letting his clubs do all the talking in sharing second place to secure his 2026 DP Tour membership card thanks to a sixth and final round 69, and be among three players to finish on 24-under on the host Infinitum Golf (Lakes & Hills Courses) at Tarragona in Spain.

Though for some reason the DP World Tour has listed McKinney officially fourth among the three at second on 24-under, listing Canadian Aaron Cockerill second as he shot the lowest last day score of 65 and India’s Shubhankar Sharma third after his closing 66 and McKinney fourth.

The 23-year-old Scottish-born McKinney but now a fully-fledged Aussie joins fellow Aussies Adam Scott, Elvis Smylie, Jason Scrivener, Min Woo Lee and David Micheluzzi with full 2026 DP World Tour status.

Aussie Connor McKinney all smiles after earning his 2026 DP World Tour card. Image – DP World Tour website

McKinney had brilliantly muscled his way to a two-shot lead on the opening day of the six round torture test thanks to a sizzling 62 and while he dropped to a share of ninth on day two with a score of 73, he was back to T5th thanks to a round three 68 . He was back up to second on the back of a day four 67 and then sensationally eagled the last on day five in a round of 65 to retain second into the last round.

Then is was mission accomplished for McKinney with a closing 69 and probably the last occasion he’ll again contest a six-round tournament.

Up front and South African Zander Lombard was busy placing daylight between himself and the field, grabbing a share of the lead on day three to be leading by six shots at six shots into round three while making it seven clear at 29-under when he ended day five – bogey, birdie and eagle – in his 64.

The 30-year-old had been side-lined for some seven months over the start of the 2025 recouperating from surgery following an anterior cruciate ligament rupture and medial menisnicus tear sustained playing a friendly game of padel with his young family and friends.

It is the second time he has secured his status on the DP World Tour through Qualifying School, having come second to Alejandro Cañizares at Final Stage in 2018.

“It hasn’t sunk in yet, but it is what I came here to do,” said an elated Lombard.

“So, unreal. It’s hopefully the springboard for what the season has in store.

“It was a great week. A tough week, a long marathon… It was easy to just sit back and relax and start making a few errors, but my caddie and I were having fun, but we stayed focused the whole week and that produced the score we have on the board.

“It’s been a tough year and a half. From knee surgery, learning how to walk again, to trying to find my game the last six months and then really starting to enjoy the game again the last two. It’s been trending and hopefully I can keep this form for the year to come.”

McKinney enjoyed a fantastic amateur career winning both the St Andrews Links Trophy and the Australian Amateur before turning professional in 2022 signing with Modest Golf Management. Growing up in Perth Australia, Connor climbed to the top 25 in the world on the amateur rankings with his impressive displays.

No such concern for McKinney after having made his debut on the DP World Tour just on three years ago teeing-up in the co-sanctioned 2022 Australian PGA and Australian Open events.  The New Year dawned and he earned six secondary 2023 Hotel Planner Tour starts and then in an impressive showing McKinney travelled to the west coast of Scotland, and the country of his birth, to enter Final Qualifying wher he amazing earned entry into the hosting of the 151st Open Championship at Royal Troon but missing the halfway cut.

At year’s end the Joondalup club in Perth, Western Australia attached McKinney entered the 2024 Tour Q School finishing second in First Stage, won Second Stage but was placed 59th and well outside the leading 20 at the Final Stage.

Aussie Connor McKinney on route to a share of second at the 2026 DP World Tour School. Image – Getty

After a top-30 early in 2024 at the Australian PGA Championship McKinney’s year was primarily spent on the Hotel Planner Tour contesting 20 events though hardly impressing eight events, making the halfway cut in two and ending the year officially 170th on the Race to Majorca monel list.

He spent the early part of 2025 as a PGA of Australasia Tour member plying the various events with a best result of 2nd in March’s Vic Open while prior to returning to Spain he was 16th in October’s WA Open.

Though it seemed McKinney’s form turned for the better in early September in finishing 5th at the First Stage of the 2026 DP World Tour Q-School in Belguim and T5th some 10 days ago at Second Stage with those efforts certainly boosting his confidence in teeing-up last Friday at Tarragona located on the Mediterranean coastline to the south of Barcelona.

“I’m pretty stoked,” said McKinney.

“I think I was in a good bit of form heading into the week, and I’d say I was pretty confident in my ability, but to pull it off at Q-School is always a good thing.

“There was a lot of good stuff and it just makes the days less stressful and a little easier, and that’s what I’ve been trying to do.

“During the year I really found my feet again, so everything is going to plan so far. I’m trending in the right direction”.

Well down Connor.

 

 

 

 

 



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