While the PGA Tour enters its offseason hiatus, professional golf maintains relentless momentum across three continents this week. The global circuit transitions seamlessly to Australia, Spain, and Portugal with significant tournaments unfolding on the DP World Tour, Ladies European Tour, and the revitalized MENA Golf Tour.
The 2026 DP World Tour season commences abruptly after a mere one-week break with the BMW Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane. Boasting a AUD 2,500,000 purse, the event features a formidable field headlined by major champions and local heroes. Adam Scott, Cam Smith, and 2006 U.S. Open winner Geoff Ogilvy join rising stars like Finland’s recent PGA Tour breakthrough Sami Valimaki. The tournament also marks a critical early opportunity for players like Denmark’s Rasmus Neergaard, who secured dual PGA Tour status with a strong finish in Dubai.
Simultaneously, the Ladies European Tour culminates its 2025 season at the Andalucia Costa Del Sol Open de España in Malaga. With €700,000 on the line, the event will finalize the coveted Order of Merit ranking, determining which top ten players earn direct access to the LPGA Q-Series and which seventy retain their tour cards for the following season.
Concurrently, the MENA Golf Tour launches its 2025-26 campaign with the PGA Aroeira Challenge in Portugal, offering a $100,000 purse. The tour’s relaunch provides a crucial competitive platform, exemplified by two contrasting narratives: the triumphant return of injured three-time DP World Tour winner Chris Wood, who dominated the recent Q-School, and the highly anticipated professional debut of the UAE’s promising amateur, Ahmad Skaik, who begins his pro journey with a sponsor exemption. A second event, the Rolear Algarve Challenge, follows immediately before a winter pause.
This coordinated international action underscores golf’s evolving, year-round calendar, offering continuous playing opportunities and development pathways for established stars and emerging talents alike.