LIV Golf Watch: Multiple stars set for DP World Tour, Asian Tour events

This week, 11 LIV Golf players will be in action. Three players will be teeing it up in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on the DP World Tour, and eight players will be playing in the Moutai Singapore Open as part of The International Series on the Asian Tour.

ABU DHABI HSBC CHAMPIONSHIP

The Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship will be played at Yas Links Golf Course in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Established in 2006, the Abu Dhabi Championship has become a prestigious event in the Middle East swing. As one of five Rolex Series tournaments, it offers a strong purse and meaningful Race to Dubai points, making it a crucial stop for elite players pursuing the season-long title, including Legion XIII's Tyrrell Hatton, who’s currently in third place in the Race to Dubai.

Yas Links Golf Course is a par 72 measuring 7,450 yards. It's the Middle East's first true links-style course and features Platinum paspalum fairways and greens with fescue rough.

TYRRELL HATTON. Hatton enters the week ranked third in the Race to Dubai standings and is looking to win the season-long prize for the first time in his career. The Legion XIII star has thrived at Yas Links over the past three seasons, posting top-7 finishes in all three starts, including a runner-up last year. Hatton arrives at the event in fantastic form, boasting back-to-back top-5 finishes in his past two starts. He finished T5 at the BMW PGA Championship and runner-up at the Alfred Dunhill Links.

TOM MCKIBBIN. McKibbin was dominant in his victory at last week’s Link Hong Kong Open. He won wire-to-wire by seven shots, punching his ticket to both the Masters and The Open Championship in the process. The young Legion XIII standout has now posted five consecutive top-20 finishes on the DP World Tour and Asian Tour.

PATRICK REED. Reed has finished in the top 20 in four of his last six worldwide starts after finishing T31 at last week’s Hong Kong Open. The 4Aces GC star has only made one start at Yas Links, which resulted in a missed cut in 2023.

MOUTAI SINGAPORE OPEN

The Moutai Singapore Open is the ninth of 10 events on The International Series and will be played at Singapore Island Country Club. Beginning in1961 as one of Asia's first pro golf events, the Singapore Open has long been a key fixture in regional golf. It was co-sanctioned with the DP World Tour (2009–2012) and Japan Golf Tour (2016–2022). Unlike last week’s Link Hong Kong Open, the Moutai Singapore Open does not offer any major exemptions to the winner.

Singapore Island Country Club is a par 72 measuring 7,008 yards. The course has hosted the Singapore Open on 28 occasions between 1961 and 2000. It offers a difficult test with trees, water hazards and lightning-fast greens. The course was ranked No. 1 in Singapore and among Asia's elite by Golf Digest.

BEN CAMPBELL. Campbell finished T59 at last week’s Hong Kong Open, which was his first start since the conclusion of the LIV Golf season. Campbell has a strong International Series resume. He finished 4th in the Order of Merit in 2023 and 3rd in 2024.

PAUL CASEY. Casey entered last week’s Hong Kong Open as one of the favorites and will be disappointed with his T59 finish given his incredible course history. It was Casey’s first start of the offseason and he will look to bounce back in Singapore after shaking off the rust.

TALOR GOOCH. Gooch started slow in Hong Kong, his first offseason start, with a round of 70 in easy scoring conditions. He bounced back nicely with a 64 in Round 2 before shooting 68-69 on the weekend when he was out of contention.

CHARLES HOWELL III. Howell III posted a top-10 finish in Hong Kong in his first ever start on The International Series. The Crushers GC veteran shot a 62 in the second round , which was the low round of the day.

ANTHONY KIM. Kim opened with rounds of 68-67 in Hong Kong, giving him his best 36-hole score since his comeback began and through the cutline comfortably. He continues to make progress and is beginning to see better results. “It’s the best I’ve hit the ball since coming back,” he told Bunkered.com. “I just haven’t got the ball in the hole. I definitely finally see the work I’m doing. I’m excited.

“I wish I’d have scored a little bit better but hopefully I make it to the weekend and get another couple days. It’s only been two days but I hit the ball really well. It’s coming along.”

CHIEH-PO LEE. Lee missed the cut last week in Hong Kong but has showed some promising signs of form this offseason, including a T11 finish at the Jakarta Championship.

THOMAS PIETERS. Pieters finished T9 last week in Hong Kong, marking his best finish across his three starts this fall. The former Ryder Cup star will be among the favorites.

CALEB SURRATT. Surratt missed the cut in Hong Kong, which was a bit of a surprise given his T7 finish the week prior at the International Series Philippines. The 21-year-old has been impressive overall on the International Series with four top 10 finishes in the past two seasons.

PLAYER NEWS

- LIV Golf has expanded its exemptions from one to two players through The International Series, a set of elevated events sanctioned by the Asian Tour. The top two players in the final 2025 International Series rankings.

- The LIV Golf Promotions event will take place Jan. 8-11, 2026, at Black Diamond Ranch in Lecanto, Florida, with four rounds of stroke-play over four days. The League will reward the top two finishers with a full-season spot in the 2026 LIV Golf League, an increase from one spot in 2025.

- At the Hong Kong Open, McKibbin shot rounds of 60-65-65-63 to win wire-to-wire by 7 shots. The Legion XIII star broke the course record in the first round, then broke the tournament scoring record by 6 shots and tied the largest margin of victory ever in the tournament’s 66-year history. He hit 67 out of 72 greens in regulation (93.1%) on the week.

- After McKibbin’s dominant victory, he reflected on his performance. “It means a lot. I mean, with a tournament with so much history behind it, and you know, great players that have won this tournament, to have the scoring record is pretty special, and something that will definitely live with me forever.”

- RangeGoats GC's Peter Uihlein, a two-time winner on The International Series, went low to try and chase down McKibbin, but finished in second place with a final-round 2-under 68 for a total of 20-under par, seven back of McKibbin's total of 27-under par.

- Several LIV Golf players had strong weeks, including Stinger GC Captain Louis Oosthuizen (T3), Ripper GC's Matt Jones (T6), 4Aces GC's Thomas Pieters (T9), Crushers GC's Charles Howell III (T9), Fireballs GC's Josele Ballester (T14), Fireballs GC's David Puig (T14) and Stinger GC's Charl Schwartzel (T14).

- Charles Howell III posted a top 10 in Hong Kong with help from a new and mysterious putter, as pointed out by Golf Digest’s Johnathan Wall.

- LIV Golf confirmed last week that the offseason window is now open for player signings, trades and other transactions.

- While speaking to Bunkered, Graeme McDowell expressed a desire to be the European Ryder Cup captain in 2027 at Adare Manor. “If it is possible, I will certainly do everything that I can to be the best Ryder Cup captain I can be. And obviously, I’d love to sit down with Ryder Cup Europe and, if it’s a possibility, find out what they would need me to do.

“As we move into the off-season, I’ll certainly make a few calls and see where the world stands. It would be the greatest moment of my life to stand there at Adare Manor as the Ryder Cup captain.

“I’d love to do it. It’d be special.”