Caleb Surratt kept the lead in the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers for the third day in a row today – giving himself a great opportunity to make up for losing here in a play-off last year.

He shot a three-under-par 68 to finish on 17 under in a tie with South African Dean Burmester, who carded a 64.

Josele Ballester from Spain is in third place, one stroke behind, after a 66 here at Riyadh Golf Club.

Englishman Richard Bland (64), Adrian Meronk (68) from Poland, and American Anthony Kim (69) are next best placed, three back.

The US$5million event is the most lucrative of the season on the Asian Tour and the final event of the year on The International Series.

Surratt was beaten by Chile’s Joaquin Niemann on the second hole of a sudden-death play-off 12 months ago, which also featured Australian Cam Smith. He could have won it in regulation play but made bogey on the last after finding water off the tee.

Dean Burmester.

He will look to banish that memory tomorrow and secure his first title in the professional game.

“Yeah, it was good,” said the 21-year-old, who plays for Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII team on the LIV Golf League.

“You’re not going to have your best stuff all the time. I came out of the gates, I really didn’t hit many bad shots early. I hit a few, but not starting off my best. I was very proud of the fight the rest of the day.

“I think it would have been real easy to continue to bleed and shoot two or three over today, take myself out of the golf tournament, but didn’t do that. I’m very proud of that.”

He made bogeys on the first and fourth, before getting back on track with a birdie on the ninth. Four birdies on the back nine restored his confidence and lead.

When asked if he sees tomorrow as a chance to redeem himself after last year, he said: “Yeah, definitely. It would be nice to get some redemption, but regardless, I’ve done really well to put myself in the position I am in. I fought really hard and worked really hard to get to that. Almost no matter what happens, it feels like I could leave now because this week has already been a win with so many positives.”

Burmester shot 63 yesterday and impressively nearly matched that today. He was bogey-free and carded seven birdies, including on the last two.

He is one the biggest hitters here and reached the par-four 18^th, which measures 396 yards, from the tee.

Scott Vincent.

He said: “Yeah, I hit one yesterday. That’s kind of how I knew I could get there and make sure I was comfortable being able to roll into that left pin. You kind of want to keep it up to the middle of the green. I went from there and hit it pretty hard, probably as hard as I’ve ever hit a tee shot.”

He finished second in a long driving competition in South Africa a week ago and the experience has put him in a good stead this week.

“I learned a few things from the long drive champion in South Africa,” he explained.

“So, it was quite cool to kind of put that to good use. It’s more about like hip mobility and rotation and how he creates his speed without feeling like you have to hit it that hard. It was quite interesting to see the dynamic and the way that they do it. I’m sure Bryson [DeChambeau] knows all about this stuff because he did it. For me to learn something like that was cool.”

Like Surrat, Burmester competes on the LIV Golf League. He plays for Stingers GC, the South African-dominated side, and won LIV Golf Chicago in August for his second win on the hugely popular franchise.

The International Series Rankings will be decided tomorrow, with the leading two players securing places on next year’s LIV Golf League.

Rankings leader Scott Vincent from Zimbabwe put himself in a strong position to finish the year on top after returning his third 67.

He is in a tie for seventh, five shots behind the leaders.

Josele Ballester.

“Today was fun,” said Vincent. “I had a lot more fun today than the past couple days. Yeah, looking forward to tomorrow’s challenge and just trying to enjoy it. Try and enjoy it as much as possible. Golf has been great so far. So just trying to build on that and keep going.

“Just trying to not make it bigger than it needs to be and just play my game, play golf. Yeah, like I mentioned, just try and enjoy this experience and this moment because it’s only going to help me no matter how it goes.”

He won the inaugural Rankings in 2022 and played on LIV Golf for the next two years before losing his status at the end of 2024. A good round tomorrow will pave the way for a remarkable return.

Filipino Miguel Tabuena came in with a 67 and is one shot back. He is third on the Rankings and needs a top six finish tomorrow to grab second place ahead of Japan’s Yosuke Asaji, who missed the cut.

Kim, Thailand’s Danthai Boonma, and Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho have outside chances to win one of those places on LIV tomorrow but need to win.

Danthai carded a 67 and is tied with Vincent, while Kho carded a 68 and is seven off top spot.

Pictures by Ian Walton/Asian Tour.

Rising American star Caleb Surratt birdied the 18th to take a one-shot lead into tomorrow’s third-round of the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers.

He carded a five-under-par 66 here at Riyadh Golf Club today, to lead on 14-under from Thomas Pieters from Belgium in second place.

Pieters also shot a 66, while American Anthony Kim rolled back the years, shooting a 64 to move into third, another two strokes back, along with England’s Tyrrell Hatton and Spaniard Josele Ballester – both in with 65s.

South African Dean Burmester (63) and Adrian Meronk (70) from Poland are a further stroke behind in a tie for sixth along with Seungbin Choi of Korea (66). Meronk was the joint first-round leader with Surratt – in the final event of the season on The International Series, and the third from last stop on the Asian Tour calendar.

Surratt was beaten by Chilean Joaquin Niemann in a sudden-death play-off here last year and has clearly returned seeking redemption.

Thomas Pieters.

The 21-year-old reached the front edge of the green on the short par-four 18th from the tee and got up and down to edge Pieters for the halfway lead. He made two birdies on the front and three on back and was bogey free.

“Very pleased. It was a good day,” said the American, who plays for Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII team on LIV Golf.

“You know, I think some of the hardest rounds in golf are honestly ones that have to follow up great ones, so to go out there today, kind of fight my thoughts at times, getting ahead of myself, I was still able to play well. That was good that I showed that to myself, and hopefully use this same momentum.”

He is without a win since turning professional last year but has finished second twice in International Series events and third once.

“It is a great leaderboard. Be good to see how it shakes out next few days,” he said.

Pieters, who plays for 4Aces GC on LIV Golf, last won in 2022 at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship – one of his six titles on the DP World Tour. This year he has recorded his two best finishes on LIV Golf, finishing joint fourth in both Korea and Virginia.

“Pretty similar to yesterday,” he said of his round today. “Played really well. I made loads of 10 to 15 footers. Only difference is I missed a couple shorter ones. Overall, super happy, obviously. Yeah, just really looking forward to the weekend and I enjoy this golf course a lot.”

Anthony Kim.

Pieters has come into the week full of confidence after top-10 finishes in Hong Kong and Singapore on the Asian Tour and The International Series.

The towering 1.96 metre golfer added: “I am just putting in the work. Just swing feels good. Not too many swing thoughts to be honest. Short game has been good, and I practice a lot on my wedges in my simulator at home and that’s been paying off.”

The 32-year-old, who made seven birdies and two bogies today, has also changed his irons.

“Yeah, my irons were kind of at the end of their lifetime and somehow I ended up with some Miura irons, and they’ve been working quite well,” he explained.

“We’re not quite there yardage-wise, but you’ve got a lot of wedges this week so I haven’t hit a lot of long irons yet. But I really love the shape of them. The ball comes off really nicely. Yeah, I think they’ll be in the bag for next year.”

Kim turned heads by moving into contention in a tournament for the first time since making his comeback to the game last year – after an absence of 12 years.

Like Surratt he did not drop a shot and made seven birdies.

He said: “My wife told me that if I make less bogeys than birdies my score will be good, so I followed that direction well today.

Scott Vincent.

“Yeah, I’m finally starting to see some of the work show. I haven’t been able to swing like I have been in practice rounds and back at home in tournament golf, but it’s starting to show up and starting to feel more comfortable out here.”

The 40-year-old has not been in contention since joining LIV Golf and his most recent victory is the 2010 Shell Houston Open.

He last finished in the top-10 in an event at the Singapore Open in 2011, where he tied for third, during a period in time when he reached number six in the world.

Zimbabwe’s Scott Vincent, the leader of The International Series, put himself in a strong position to finish the season in top spot by shooting his second 67 to lie six off the lead. Filipino Miguel Tabuena is also well placed following a 68 and is another shot back.

The top two on the Rankings will earn places on the LIV Golf League next year and with Japan’s Yosuke Asaji, in second place, firing a 72 to miss the cut the door has been left open for Tabuena, who is in third place.

Defending champion Niemann surprisingly will not be here for the final two rounds after he carded a 69 to miss the cut by one.

Pictured by Ian Walton/Asian Tour.

Anthony Kim has played himself into contention at the halfway stage of the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers, and the American admitted his strong return to form is down to his rediscovered love of the game and “the hardest work” he has put in since he was a youngster.

Kim sits T3 at the halfway stage of the $US5million tournament, the final event on the schedule for The International Series. The top two players on The International Series Rankings will win promotion to the LIV Golf League for the 2026 season.

The 40-year-old was relegated from LIV Golf at the end of the season after a two-year run as a wild card, following 12 years away from the game. He currently sits 127th on the Rankings race with 13.46 points having played five tournaments so far this season, and with an elevated 324 points up for grabs at Riyadh Golf Club this week, there is a lot at stake for the former Ryder Cup player and the rest of the field.

Kim carded seven birdies in a bogey-free 64 that left him on 11-under at the halfway stage, behind Legion XIII youngster Caleb Surratt (-14) and Thomas Pieters of Belgium, the 4Aces GC player (-13).

Reflecting on his good form this week, Kim, a three-time PGA Tour winner, put things down to a lot of hard work off the course. He said: “I’m finally starting to see some of the work show. I haven’t been able to swing like I have been in practice rounds and back at home in tournament golf, but it is starting to show up and starting to feel more comfortable out here.

Anthony Kim.

“Hard work – this is the hardest I have worked since I was a little kid. I (have) fallen back in love with the game. I feel a lot of gratitude playing this game, getting to travel. We were in Dubai last week, in Saudi now. Just looking forward to the future.”

When talking about ‘falling in love with golf again,’ he revealed: “It means that I actually want to go to the golf course. I was so excited to leave the golf course when I had… you know, dealing with some of the mental illness and addiction issues. At this point I am excited to be here. I feel blessed to be here, and I am going to keep working as hard as I can.

“It is a lot easier when you start hitting fairways and making a few putts, absolutely. Getting kicked in the teeth every week over the last two years (on LIV Golf) playing against some of the major championship winners and some very successful players has been tough. I think I needed to be in that fire and I will be ready for the weekend.”

Asked if he had the title in his sights, a first since 2010, he said: “I am not too worried about that. That stuff used to matter to me. Right now I am just working on taking one shot at a time and make good golf swings and enjoy my time here in Saudi Arabia. I am not worried about where I am on the leaderboard until the last nine holes on Sunday. I know if I keep playing well, I will give myself a chance, and hopefully I’ll be close.”

Kim also revealed some wise words from his nearest and dearest helped him get in the right mindset. He said: “My wife told me that if I make less bogeys than birdies my score will be good, so I followed that direction well today!”

The PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers is the final event on The International Series schedule this year, and the third from last stop on the Asian Tour.

Pictures by Ian Walton/Asian Tour.

Caleb Surratt [main picture] and Adrian Meronk rekindled their magic with Riyadh Golf Club today, shooting nine-under-par 62s to take the first-round lead in the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers.

They lead from Belgium’s Thomas Pieters who returned a 63 while Kiradech Aphibarnrat from Thailand shot a 64 – in the final event of the season on The International Series, and the third from last stop on the Asian Tour calendar.

Both Surratt and Meronk have history at this venue. Surratt shot a course record 61 in this event last year in the third round before going on to lose in a play-off, while Meronk claimed the LIV Golf Riyadh title here in February.

Surratt, who was beaten by Chile’s Joaquin Niemann in extra-time 12 months ago, was comfortably on course to break his course record when, after starting on 10, he played the back nine in seven-under-par 29.

He birdied six on the trot from 11 and made birdie on the last, before two more birdies followed on holes one and two. That put the American on 59 watch, before that was stood down after a bogey on the fourth. He closed with a birdie on nine.

Adrian Meronk.

“It was a great day,” he said. “I’ve been working really, really hard the last few weeks. This is my fifth week traveling, so I’ve learned a lot. I’ve had to fight a lot of battles, so it was kind of nice to win today’s battle. I’m very pleased, but it’s just the start of the tournament.”

The 21-year-old from North Carolina joined the LIV Golf League soon after turning professional and plays for Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII team.

He is yet to win but has come close several times. As well as tying for second here last year he was also joint second in the International Series England earlier in 2024 and was equal third in the International Series Morocco before that.

“It’s been a much better year. I believe I’m one of the best players, and I truly have shown myself that, especially towards the back half of the year. I’m really starting to learn my process, learn what I need to do to play well,” he added.

“I think it’s an everlasting process to learn how to be more consistent. I feel like my good golf is more than good enough, but what makes all these great players so good is they can bring it nearly every week.”

Meronk’s victory here at the start of the season was his first on the LIV Golf League – which he debuted on last year.

Kiradech Aphibarnrat.

“I don’t know. It just seems like it [Riyadh Golf Club] suits my game,” said the Polish golfer, who plays for Cleeks GC.

“I really like it. I think I kind of know how to play this course already, and I like the greens. They roll nicely. I see the break nicely. Yeah, I just enjoy playing here. Excited to be here again.”

Pieters birdied the last two holes to close in at the end. The 4Aces GC man arrived here in encouraging form after top 10 finishes in both the Link Hong Kong Open and the Moutai Singapore Open.

He said: “I putted unbelievable today. I think I had 24 putts. Usually, I don’t make a lot of putts from 10 to 15 feet, and today I made all of them.

“I was putting on Sunday night on my putting green at home, and I was just kind of messing about with different models and stuff. I always like to tinker with putters. This one is an old one that I got eight, nine years ago, never used it, but it did a good job today.”

Kiradech, the Asian Tour Order of Merit winner in 2013, also clearly likes the course, as he was joint third in the Saudi Open presented by PIF early last year.

He said: “I’m quite pleased with the way I’m playing the past couple months. Starting really good, just can’t get everything going through the weekend. But I just keep knocking on the door, and hopefully everything is coming together.

Louis Oosthuizen.

“I’ve been playing here not often, but this is my third time playing in this place, and I would say the green conditions is one of the best compared with the last two I played before.”

South African Louis Oosthuizen and England’s Paul Casey are tied for fifth following 65s, along with Korean Seonghyeon Kim and Colombia’s Sebastian Munoz.

Defending champion Niemann has work to do after a 72, while Australian Cam Smith, who was also in the play-off last year, came in with a 71.

The race to finish in the top two on The International Series Rankings to secure a place on the LIV Golf League moved one step closer.

The leading three players in the rankings, Scott Vincent from Zimbabwe, Yosuke Asaji from Japan, and Filipino Miguel Tabuena were paired in the same group.

Vincent and Tabuena both carded 67s, while Asaji fired a 72.

Vincent leads the Rankings, with 325.59 points, ahead of Asaji in second, on 285.3, with Tabuena third, having earned 232.28 points.

However, with the winner this week set to earn 324 points, the race is wide open, meaning players further down on the Rankings also have a chance to grab one of the places at the very end.

Pictures by Ian Walton/Asian Tour.

The PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers brings the season to a close on The International Series, while it is the third from last stop on the Asian Tour calendar.

Boasting prizemoney of US$5million it is the most lucrative event of the year, where much will be decided.

The leading two players from The International Series Rankings at the end of the week will book their places on next year’s LIV Golf League, while the event will play a significant role in determining who claims the Asian Tour Order of Merit title.

The tournament first became part of the Asian Tour in 2022, and regularly attracts the strongest field of the year with a glittering array of stars.

First played in 2019, it has been won on two occasions by American Dustin Johnson while Chile’s Joaquin Niemann is the defending champion.

The event was held at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in Jeddah for the first five years before moving to Riyadh Golf Club last year.

General view of the !8th hole at Riyadh Golf Club. 

Tournament Information

• Tournament: PIF Saudi International powered by Softbank Investment Advisers
• Date: 19 – 22 November
• Venue: Riyadh Golf Club
• Par/Yards: 71 / 7,411 yards
• Purse: US$5million (First place US$1million)
• Previous Winner: Joaquin Niemann (CHI) – won play-off against Cameron Smith (AUS) and Caleb Surratt (USA)
• Previous winning score: 263 (-21)
• Asian Tour leg: 19^th
• The International Series leg: Ninth
• Edition of tournament: Seventh (Asian Tour 2022, 2023 and 2024, DP World Tour 2019, 2020, 2021)
• Total number of players: 120
• Format: Stroke play tournament over four rounds of 18 holes with a cut after 36 holes to leading 65 pros plus ties.
• Social media hashtags: #TimeToRise # InternationalSeries #ThisIsEverything

Sergio Garcia.

Field Breakdown

• Order of Merit winners: John Catlin (2024), Jazz Janewattananond (2019), Scott Hend (2016), Kiradech Aphibarnrat (2013)
• Nationalities: 30
• Top contenders: Tyrrell Hatton (ENG), Joaquin Niemann (CHI), Cameron Smith (AUS), Dustin Johnson (USA), Patrick Reed (USA), Tom McKibbin (NIR), Scott Vincent (ZIM), Kazuki Higa (JPN), Miguel Tabuena (PHI), Sergio Garcia (ESP), Yosuke Asaji (JPN)
• Highest ranked player on OWGR: Tyrrell Hatton #20
• Highest ranked player on 2025 Asian Tour Order of Merit: Kazuki Higa (JPN) #1
• Highest ranked player in 2025 International Series Rankings: Scott Vincent (ZIM) #1
• Number of amateurs in the field: 6
• Number of Saudi players in the field: 7

Graeme McDowell.

Tournament Notes

• Englishman Tyrrell Hatton is the highest ranked player in the field this week, after a successful season in which he won the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, finished runner-up at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and had a T5 at the BMW PGA Championship on the DP World Tour. He also finished T4 at the U.S. Open, his seventh career top 10 in a Major. He has won eight DP World Tour events, including one BMW PGA Championship and five Rolex Series events, and one PGA Tour event, the 2020 Arnold Palmer Invitational. He is also a four-time Ryder Cup player for the European side. Playing on the LIV Golf League as part of John Rahm’s Legion XIII squad he has recorded one individual win which came in 2024.
• Defending champion Joaquin Niemann from Chile won an incredible five individual titles in the 2025 LIV Golf League season, as well as one team tournament as captain of the Torque GC team. This year he also recorded his first top-10 in a Major, finishing T8 in the PGA Championship. Prior to joining LIV Golf he recorded two wins on the PGA Tour, the 2019 A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier and the 2022 Genesis Invitational, and he also won the 2023 ISPS Handa Australian Open on the DP World Tour. Niemann was the number one ranked golfer in the World Amateur Golf Ranking for 44 weeks, from May 2017 to April 2018 when he turned professional.
• Australian Cam Smith was one of the two players in the play-off for this tournament last year that was eventually won by Niemann. He famously won the Open Championship in 2022, and during this career-best season he also picked up the winning trophies at the Players Championship, Sentry Tournament of Champions, Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, a T3 at the Masters Tournament and a T4 at the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers. As captain of Ripper GC on the LIV Golf League he has won three individual titles since joining in 2022.
• Dustin Johnson of the U.S. is a two-time Major champion, having won the 2020 Masters and 2016 U.S. Open. He was ranked number one in the world from February in 2017 and he held that position for 64 straight weeks, the 5th longest run as number one. He returned to the number one spot in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 and has been at number one for a total of over 130 weeks. Currently playing on the LIV Golf League as captain of the 4Aces, he has won one tournament each season there in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Johnson has won 24 PGA Tour events during his career and been part of five Ryder Cup teams and three Presidents Cup squads.
• American Patrick Reed has been in fine form this season in world-wide events, with a win at LIV Golf Dallas, a third-place finish in the Masters, and a T3 in the BMW PGA Championship. On the Asian Tour he was runner-up the International Series Macau presented by Wynn in March. On the DP World Tour he also recorded two other top-10’s while on LIV he posted five other top 10’s, finishing seventh in the individual standings. He won last year’s Link Hong Kong Open, his first title on the Asian Tour.
• Tom McKibbin from Northern Ireland won the Link Hong Open wire-to-wire three weeks ago for his first Asian Tour and International Series titles, after setting the tournament scoring record by six shots. Playing on the LIV Golf League as part of Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII team he posted four individual top-10s and four team wins this season. On the DP World Tour McKibbin has posted three top-10s this year, with a T3 at the Porsche Singapore Classic as his best result.
• Japan’s Kazuki Higa has led the Order of Merit since his T2 at the International Series Philippines four weeks ago, after earlier winning the Yeangder TPC and Shinhan Donghae Open in back-to-back weeks in September. He also had a strong start to his 2025 campaign, going T8, T5 and T2 in the Smart Infinity Philippine Open, International Series India Presented by DLF and New Zealand Open presented by Sky Sports respectively. On the Japan Tour he has recorded seven top 10’s this season, including wins at the Shinhan Donghae Open and at the ISPS HANDA Explosion in the Summer in mid-August.
• Scott Vincent from Zimbabwe tops The International Series Rankings after a win at the International Series Morocco in July, a runner-up at the Jakarta International Championship three weeks ago and a T10 at the International Series India presented by DLF earlier this season. He now sits in second place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit after Higa passed him with a T2 in the Philippines, and among Vincent’s other strong finishes are T2 at the Shinhan Donghae Open in September, T4 in the Kolon Korea Open and T8 at the Smart Infinity Philippine Open. In addition to his good results on the Asian Tour this season he has also posted three top-fives on the Japan Tour, the most recent at the Sansan KBC Augusta Golf Tournament in late August.
• Miguel Tabuena from the Philippines had a story-book week at home last month, winning the International Series Philippines on his home course for his fourth Asian Tour victory. Starting out the 2025 season with a T5 in the Smart Infinity Philippine Open he also added another T5 at the Yeangder TPC in September. With his win at Sta Elena, along with a T11 in the Jakarta International Championship a T14 in the International Series Macau presented by Wynn and a T21 in the Link Hong Kong Open, Tabuena sits in third place on both the Asian Tour Order of Merit and The International Series Rankings.
• Sergio Garcia of Spain has won 38 tournaments as a professional notably the 2017 Masters Tournament and the 2008 Players Championship. In addition to his Masters win Garcia has recorded an impressive 22 other top 10s in Major championships, including two second place finishes and two T2s. He has represented Europe in the Ryder Cup 10 times, on the winning side on six occasions, and he holds the Ryder Cup record for Most Overall Matches Won with 25, Most Overall Points Won with 28.5 and Most Wins in Foursome Matches with 12. His highest ever rank on the OWGR was second, which he reached in late 2008. Captaining the Fireballs GC team on the LIV Golf League Garcia won two individual titles, the 2025 LIV Hong Kong and 2024 LIV Andalucia.
• Japan’s Yosuke Asaji won the Moutai Singapore Open two week’s ago for his second Asian Tour and first International Series title, a fortnight after finishing T2 in the International Series Philippines. After these two great finishes he is now in second place on The International Series Rankings. On the Japan Golf Tour Asaji has recorded a win at The Crowns in early May and a T2 at the Kansai Open Golf Championship two weeks later as his best results this season.
• Major winners in the field this week: Martin Kaymer, Patrick Reed, Louis Oosthuizen, Graeme McDowell, Sergio Garcia, Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson
• Current LIV Golf League players in the field this week: 40
• Past champions in the field this week: Joaquin Niemann (2024), Abraham Ancer (2023), Harold Varner III (2022), Dustin Johnson (2021, 2019), Graeme McDowell (2020)

Pictures by Ian Walton/Asian Tour.

Joaquín Niemann has revealed the secret to his success this year: playing tournaments with “less expectations” but practicing beforehand with high expectations, like he means to win.

The Chilean spoke about his winning formula today ahead of the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers – which starts tomorrow at Riyadh Golf Club.

He won the tournament last year and will try to become the first player to successfully defend it, while he is also looking for win number six this season – having claimed five individual titles on the LIV Golf League.

It has been the finest season of his career and at the age of 27 his approach to the game shows maturity beyond his years.

“Obviously, I like to go out and play with the less expectations the better,” said Niemann, who won LIV Golf events in Adelaide, Singapore, Mexico, Virginia, and UK this season.

“I feel like all I have to do is prepare myself the best I can during very good preparation weeks, so I can get to the tournament and just play golf. Everything else I feel like is going to take care by itself. Yeah, my expectations during practice are big, I practice to win. Yeah, that’s one of the reasons that I’m here.”

Joaquin Niemann pictured winning LIV Golf Singapore in March. Picture by Thananuwat Srirasant/Getty Images.

He made a brilliant birdie to win here last year at Riyadh Golf Club on the second hole of a sudden-death play-off against American Caleb Surratt and Cam Smith from Australia.

An exquisite lob shot to a foot set up that winning birdie and it is a safe bet such flair will be on display this week.

The victory also saw him secure The International Series Rankings title, as like this year, it was the final event of the season on The International Series.

“I feel like the game is in a good spot at the moment. I feel like I’m working towards the right direction. I did a few changes on my team which I’m pretty happy about it. So, I got really big expectation of myself,” he said.

“So, yeah, it’s nice to have a good team that I can be surrounded with. I got, I think, the best support system that I could have and I got the best of the best on every aspect so I’m pretty happy where I am.

“I think the key is also the consistency of good quality work with my team. I feel like I said before I’m really happy to have the people that I have on my bag. You know, I know that they work hard and try to make me a better person, better player.”

He has been paired with American Dustin Johnson, winner of this event in 2019 and 2021, and Tom McKibbin from Northern Ireland, who claimed the Link Hong Kong Open earlier this month, for the first two days.

They are all LIV Golf players and will be joined on the franchise by the leading two players on The International Series Rankings at the end of the week.

Scott Vincent from Zimbabwe currently leads the Rankings, with 325.59 points, ahead of Japan’s Yosuke Asaji in second, on 285.3. Miguel Tabuena from the Philippines holds third place, having earned 232.28 points.

With the winner this week set to earn 324 points the race is wide open, with a wealth of players in with a chance.

The US$5million tournament, the richest of the season, is also the third from last stop on Asian Tour calendar and will play a significant role in helping to determine who wins the Tour’s Order of Merit title. Japan’s Kazuki Higa currently leads the Merit list, with Vincent second, and Tabuena third.

With this season’s International Series Rankings race going down to the wire this week, Japan’s Yosuke Asaji is taking inspiration in many different forms from the big-name stars he is plotting to join on the LIV Golf League next season.

Asaji currently sits second behind The International Series Rankings leader Scott Vincent from Zimbabwe going into the final marquee event of the campaign, the US$5 million PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers which starts tomorrow at Riyadh Golf Club. The top two players will make it through to the LIV Golf League.

The 32-year-old Asaji shot up the rankings after putting together a late-season run that included an impressive T2 at International Series Philippines and a stunning play-off win over Jeunghun Wang of Korea at the Moutai Singapore Open two weeks ago.

With this week’s Saudi showpiece offering elevated points, Asaji has a great chance to capitalise and secure a life-changing place on the LIV roster for next season.

Vincent leads the Rankings on 325.59 points, Asaji is on 285.3, while Miguel Tabuena from the Philippines holds third place, having earned 232.28 points. With the winner this week set to earn 324 points the race is wide open.

Yosuke Asaji after winning the Moutai Singapore Open two weeks ago. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Asaji should know what he must do to stay on track with his nearest rivals as he has been drawn in a group with Vincent and Tabuena.

Ahead of the Riyadh Golf Club event, Asaji admitted he had taken advice from “his best friend” on LIV Golf – and was constantly looking to learn technical aspects from some of the most famous names in world golf lining up in an elite-level field this week.

He explained: “Jinichiro Kozuma (the Japanese Iron Heads GC player) is my best friend, and he always says to me that LIV Golf is the best. At this week’s event we will be playing with a lot of LIV Golf players, and it is very important for me to experience that level and standard of golf every day.”

Asaji has already experienced life at the elite level – he finished second in the Philippines, behind Tabuena and tied with his compatriot Kazuki Higa, ahead of a stacked field that included former world No.1 Dustin Johnson and Major champions Patrick Reed, Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen.

However, there are specific players he will be looking out for this week in Saudi. Asaji singled out Ripper GC skipper Cameron Smith, the 2022 Open champion for his putting prowess. He also highlighted Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann, the defending champion this week and a five-time winner on LIV Golf this season as a must-watch. Asaji praised Niemann, the reigning International Series Rankings champion, for his perfect swing technique.

He said: “I always want to learn more skills from the top LIV Golf players, and I always watch them on TV for technique. I watch a lot of Cameron Smith on Instagram – I am always checking his putting technique on there. Putting is actually something I am working more on at the moment anyway, I have been putting more focus on it than ever before. And with Joaquin Niemann, I think his swing is on a different level – his swing and process is always perfect.”

Ekpharit Wu from Thailand and Chinese Taipei’s Hung Chien-yao were in a class of their own on Sunday at the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open.

Wu chased down the overnight leader Hung on the back nine to post a five-under-par 67 verses Hung’s 70 to take the victory by two. They were eight and six shots respectively clear of Guatemala’s Jose Toledo and Charlie Lindh from Sweden in tied-third.

Wu’s touch on the Taifong Golf Club greens was exquisite, and he led the field in Putts per Round, together with Filipino Lloyd Jefferson Go, with 26 and topped the Putts per GIR list on his own with a 1.528 average.

He was also highly accurate off the tee and into the greens, ranking fourth in Fairways Hit with 69.64% and T5 in GIR with 73.61%.

Both Wu and runner-up Hung topped the list for Birdies made during the week with 23, two more than Toledo and three more then Lindh, and Wu also led the field in Eagles with two.

Hung Chien-yao.

Hung was in great form during the week and produced rock-solid ball striking stats, leading both the GIR category and Fairways Hit categories with 83.33% and 78.57% respectively. He also performed well on the greens and was T7 in Putts per GIR with a 1.65 average.

Of the two joint third-place finishers Lindh and Toledo, Toledo had better stats on the greens ranking T6 in Putts per Round with 26.75 and sixth in Putts per GIR with 1.646.

Lindh was better off the tee and into the greens, and was fourth in GIR 75% with and T12 in Fairways Hit with 60.71%. He also led the field in the Bounce Back category with 66.67%.

Statistics Categories leaders at the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open (of players making the cut):

• Putts per Round – Ekpharit Wu (THA), Lloyd Jefferson Go (PHI): 26
• Putts per GIR – Ekpharit Wu (THA): 1.528
• GIR – Hung Chien-yao (TPE): 83.33%
• Fairways Hit – Hung Chien-yao (TPE): 78.57%
• Driving Distance – Roberto Lebrija (MEX): 327.8 yards
• Most Eagles – Ekpharit Wu (THA): 2
• Most Birdies – Hung Chien-yao (TPE), Ekpharit Wu (THA): 23
• Fewest Bogies or Worse – Siddikur Rahman (BAN): 4
• Scrambling – Siddikur Rahman (BAN): 86.67%
• Bounce back – Charlie Lindh (SWE): 66.67%

Scott Vincent is in pole position to take one of two spots on LIV Golf next season as he tops The International Series Rankings race, with just one tournament remaining – this week’s PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers.

The Zimbabwean is taking nothing for granted as he looks to secure his return to the big league, having enjoyed two seasons with Iron Heads GC after winning the first ever Rankings race in 2022.

With two LIV Golf spots on offer this season via the Rankings race, he has carved out a healthy lead thanks to his victory at International Series Morocco and narrow play-off loss to Wade Ormsby at the Jakarta International Championship.

Going into this week’s US$5 million event – the final tournament of the season on The International Series, which offers elevated Rankings points – Vincent is changing nothing, simply sticking to his tried and tested formula of concentrating on the moment.

Scott Vincent with the International Series Morocco trophy. Picture by Steve Bardens/Asian Tour.

He said: “I never focus too much on leaderboards – to me it is more important to concentrate on every single shot, to make sure I give it my best. I practise this every day, and I try to stay in the moment during my practise so I can do the same out on the golf course.

“Of course there will be competition out there, but I can’t really worry too much about that – I just need to trust in my process and continue to try and improve and get better every day and every time I stand over the golf ball.”

Vincent leads the standings ahead of Japan’s Yosuke Asaji — who won the Moutai Singapore Open and finished T2 in the Philippines — and International Series Philippines champion Miguel Tabuena from the Philippines.

International Series India presented by DLF winner Ollie Schniederjans sits in fifth place, followed by Jakarta champion Ormsby in sixth and Japan’s Kazuki Higa in 10th. The remaining positions inside the top ten are held by four LIV Golf players.

Vincent, winner of the International Series England in 2022, has been paired with Asaji and Tabuena in the first two rounds.

Just when you thought the 2024 season had come to an end on the Asian Tour and The International Series, there was actually more to come. Story from 2024 Asian Tour Yearbook.

Chile’s irrepressible star Joaquin Niemann claimed the season-ending PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers, and The International Series Rankings, but not nearly as easily as was expected following a memorable and completely unexpected play-off victory, filled with drama, against Cam Smith and Caleb Surratt.

Niemann made a brilliant birdie, off the back of an exquisite lob shot to a foot, on the second play-off hole to triumph at Riyadh Golf Club, after both Smith and Surrat missed theirs from close range.

All three birdied the first hole of the play-off – played on the par-four 18th – soon after Niemann and Surratt, paired in the last group, both surprisingly bogeyed the last to fall back into a tie with Smith on 21-under.

Joaquin Niemann pictured with the PIF Saudi International and The International Series Rankings trophies on Saturday last year. 

Niemann, the leader at the start of the day by one, closed with a four-under-par 67, Surratt shot a 66 while Smith, seemingly completely out of the running playing in the sixth from last group, stormed through with a 62.

“I enjoy being in that position, but there’s times sometimes that it takes a little bit longer. It was a good day. Caleb and me, we played great,” said Niemann, who plays on the LIV Golf League for Torque GC.

“Never thought we were going to be in a play-off with Cam Smith. He was early. An hour before us when he was done. I thought we were going to stay away from the 21-under, but you never know in golf.”

He got off to the perfect start with birdies on the first three holes and appeared on course for the win before dropping a shot on 14. On the 18th he found trouble off the tee and hacked his second out of some small trees and into the fairway before missing a tricky five footer for the outright win. Surrat made bogey after pushing his tee shot into the lake on the right. It was a calamitous finish in contrast to Smith who made birdie there.

He added: “Yeah, it’s a really good way to wrap up the season. I’m really excited for what’s coming next season on LIV and hopefully get into a few Majors.”

Caleb Surratt.

His success meant American Peter Uihlein and Ben Campbell from New Zealand finished second and third on The International Rankings, respectively.

It also marked his second win of the season in Saudi, as he claimed the LIV Golf Jeddah in March shortly after winning LIV Golf Mayakoba.

Said Smith: “I think it was a bonus to even get in there, to be fair, sitting down for an hour and a bit. It was fine. I did what I had to do. Obviously, a shame to miss the putt there, but it is what it is.

“I was thinking my percentage of having a top five was very slim. Yeah, it’s a weird game sometimes. It’s kind of lucky that there wasn’t any beers in the clubhouse because I would have had a few, I think. It’s a weird game sometimes, and you never really know what’s going to happen.”

Surratt, just 20-years-old, was attempting to win for the first time as a professional.

The bogey on 18 was his only dropped shot and meant yet another narrow miss on the Asian Tour, following joint third and second place finishes in International Series events in Morocco and England earlier in the year.

“Yeah, it’s a tough pill to swallow,” said the American, who plays for Legion XIII on the LIV Golf League.

“I’ve been really close a few times this year in The International Series, and I really fought hard this week because I didn’t get off to a great start.

“I did all I could do. I hit six perfect golf shots in the playoff, and I didn’t really find my way this time, and hopefully one day it does.”

Cam Smith.

Campbell claimed fourth place outright following a closing 64 to miss the play-off by one shot, and his chance of winning The International Series Rankings. Claiming the Rankings brings with it playing rights on the LIV Golf League and while he agonisingly missed that, he was later rewarded for his efforts by being asked to play for RangeGoats GC on the league in 2025.

Pictures by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.