With four of the top-six ranked players in the field for this week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, the tournament continues to cement its position as one of the most important early-season events in the world schedule.
This is just the 11th edition of the tournament, but it has already become one of the most anticipated events in the world, and the biggest reason for that is the quality of field they have managed to assemble each year.
And this year is no different, with world No.1 Jordan Spieth and No.3 Rory McIlroy headlining the 126-man field and both hoping to draw first blood in a season that is expected to develop into a keen contest between the two.
Spieth v McIlroy – golf fans do not need any more cajoling after that. Along with the world No2 Jason Day, they form the modern trinity that is expected to drive the sport in the near future.
VIDEO: @TheJoyofGolf previews @ADGolfChamps and gives his verdict on the contenders https://t.co/vYKhs7f0kz pic.twitter.com/LdMM152Gwk
— Sport360° (@Sport360) January 19, 2016More than their reputation, it’s their recent form that has raised the expectation level this week. Spieth is coming off a mind-boggling win in his first start of the year – the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii – where he toyed with an elite field of PGA Tour winners and romped to an eight-shot win.
McIlroy, on the other hand, has enjoyed a significant period of rest, but with the confidence of winning his last start – the DP World Tour Championship in November last year. It’s been almost two months since that win, but he never starts his season with any rust, having finished six times inside the top-five in Abu Dhabi.
As engaging as their rivalry is, there is so much more to look forward to this year. Apart from Spieth and McIlroy, the field includes world No5 Henrik Stenson, American world No6 Rickie Fowler and three-time Abu Dhabi champion Martin Kaymer.
A number of stars who made headlines last year will look forward to another strong season. This includes the WGC-HSBC Champions winner Russell Knox of Scotland; the European Tour 2015 ‘Rookie of the Year’, South Korean Byeong Hun An; England’s Danny Willett who will hope to go one better than his last year’s Race to Dubai finish as No2 to McIlroy; and Ryder Cup hopefuls like Andy Sullivan, Matthew Fitzpatrick and Bernd Wiesberger.
The practice range at the @ADGolfChamps is busy this morning @ADGolfClub #AbuDhabiHSBC pic.twitter.com/vOIWV1Hnuh
— Sport360° (@Sport360) January 19, 2016Also starting what is certainly an important season for them are Ryder Cup veterans Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter. Both are currently outside the top-50 of the world rankings, so they would want to post some good finishes early and strengthen their chances to be in captain Darren Clarke’s team. Both played well in last week’s EurAsia Cup.
The tournament starts tomorrow and tickets are priced Dh50 for a day and Dh150 for the season. They can be purchased on the event’s official website www.abudhabigolfchampionship.com.
