Ras Al Khaimah Championship 2025 Preview, Picks & Analysis

Rolex Series winners Thorbjorn Olesen and Paul Waring will join Spanish stars Jorge Campillo and Pablo Larrazabal at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship at Al Hamra Golf Club.

Olesen stormed to a six-stroke victory in the Emirate last year to enter the winner’s circle for the eighth time on the DP World Tour and he is relishing the opportunity to defend his title at the third event on the International Swing on the 2025 Race to Dubai. 

The Dane earned dual membership with the PGA Tour through his finish on the Race to Dubai for the second year in succession and is looking forward to beginning 2025 in the UAE, his adopted home, before heading over to the United States.

"It was very special to win in Ras Al Khaimah with my family watching on last year and I’m excited to try and defend my title in January," he said.

"We have made the UAE our home and it feels great to be able to start the year somewhere we feel so comfortable and welcome. The Ras Al Khaimah Championship is a great event on a good golf course, and I hope to be able to give defending my title a good go.

"It was challenging balancing my schedule between the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, but I’m raring to go again after getting my season started in the Middle East."

(Image Credit: Kevin Diss Photography)

Waring, who is also based in the UAE, sealed a long-awaited second DP World Tour title and first on the Rolex Series at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship last month, and the Englishman also earned dual membership with the PGA Tour after finishing fifth on the 2024 Race to Dubai.

"It was a special end to the season for me and I’m very proud of what I achieved in Abu Dhabi. It’s an exciting time in my career and I can’t wait to tee it up in the UAE again," he said.

"It’s the perfect place to start the year and Al Hamra Golf Club is a brilliant venue. I’m looking forward to the test and hopefully I can have another good result."

Nine-time DP World Tour winner Larrazabal secured victory at the 2014 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, while Campillo will look to earn a second victory in the UAE after his success at the 2020 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.

"We get treated so well in the UAE and I’m really looking forward to returning to Ras Al Khaimah," Larrazabal said.

"It’s a fantastic place to play golf at the start of the year and the golf courses are always in brilliant condition. I can’t wait to get out there and see where my game is at."

John Parry, Johannes Veerman and Elvis Smylie will be looking to continue their excellent starts to the 2025 Race to Dubai when they tee it up this week.

Englishman Parry claimed his second DP World Tour title, and first for 14 years, at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open in December, just one month after finalising his promotion from the European Challenge Tour after winning three times on the Road to Mallorca.

"Last year was probably the best year of my career in terms of results and I’m hoping I can now kick on and continue that form in 2025," Parry said.

"Having so much success on the Challenge Tour, and then to cap off the year in Mauritius, helped me regain my confidence and I now feel like I’ve got a chance every time I tee it up. I love playing in the Middle East, everything about it is top class from the condition of the golf courses to the hospitality on offer, so I’m really looking forward to the Ras Al Khaimah Championship."

American Veerman also won his second DP World Tour title in 2024, ending a three-year wait for victory when he triumphed in the Nedbank Golf Challenge. The 32-year-old overturned a five-stroke deficit to become the second successive American winner of ‘Africa’s Major’ and heads into 2025 with a renewed sense of confidence.

"I’m really looking forward to trying to build on my win in South Africa when I tee it up at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship later this month," he said.

"I’ve put in a lot of work over the last couple of years and I was delighted to get over the line in South Africa to make that hard work pay off. I always love playing in the United Arab Emirates and I’m sure it will be a great week at Al Hamra."

Australia’s Smylie showed nerves of steel to claim his maiden DP World Tour title with a wire-to-wire victory at the BMW Australian PGA Championship in November. The 22-year-old only secured his first professional success at the Bowra & O'Dea Nexus Advisernet WA Open the month before on the PGA Tour of Australasia and continued his rich vein of form with a two-shot triumph at Royal Queensland Golf Club.

"The back end of last year was truly life-changing for me and I’m so excited to get the opportunity to show what I can do on the world stage on the DP World Tour," Smylie said.

"This will be the first year I’ve ever played in the Middle East and I’m looking forward to the Ras Al Khaimah Championship. It looks a great course and has produced some good winners over the years, so hopefully I can continue my good form and compete at the top end of the leaderboard."

New Zealander Ryan Fox, who triumphed at Al Hamra Golf Club at the Ras Al Khaimah Classic in 2022, will return to the Emirate for the first time in two years and is excited to compete at a venue which harbours happy memories.

"I’ve obviously got great memories of Ras Al Khaimah and I’m looking forward to going back next year," he said. "I won a different tournament, but it still feels good going back to Al Hamra.

"I think it will be a tough test of golf. There are a lot of tee shots that are quite tricky, especially the back nine - ten, 12 and coming down the stretch 16, 17, 18 are narrow fairways. There’s always a bit of wind round there, it will be a good test."

Tournament Winners:

The inaugural Ras Al Khaimah Championship was won in 2022 by Nicolai Hojgaard, in 2023 by Daniel Gavins and last year by Thorbjorn Olesen.

Form Guide:

Thorbjorn Olesen is the defending champion and is preparing for life on the PGA Tour. He would love to head off with another DP World Tour title to his name.

The Course:

Al Hamra Golf Club was designed by the legendary Peter Harradine. It is a par 72 measuring 7,325 yards. It is tree-lined and features many water hazards. The key to low scoring here is accuracy from the tee.

Prize Money:

The total prize fund is $2.5m, with 3,500 Race to Dubai points and 1,000 Ryder Cup points on offer.

How to Watch:

Thursday, January 23-Sunday, January 26, Sky Sports Golf, 8am.

To Win:

Thorbjorn Olesen. On the crest of a wave

Each Way:

Paul Waring. Finally has self-belief

Each Way:

Ryan Fox. Huge hitter

Five to Follow:

Thorbjorn Olesen. Wonderful putter

Paul Waring. Played superbly at the Team Cup

Ryan Fox. Could rip this course to shreds

Johannes Veerman. A winner again

Elvis Smylie. Fabulous prospect

Five Outsiders to Watch:

Padraig Harrington. Still a class act

Jimmy Walker. Former US PGA champion

Brandon Stone. On the way back

Robin Williams. Gifted South African

George Coetzee. In the wilderness