Who is our resident tipster backing as the season-ending DP World Tour Playoffs get underway? Read Tom Jacobs’ Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship betting guide to find out.
After all the doubt and confusion, the DP World Tour Playoffs will finally take place in the Middle East – and we start at Yas Links with 70 of the top 80 in the Race to Dubai Rankings as players look to move into the all-important 50 that will take them onto Dubai for next week’s Tour Championship. But let’s start at the start, shall we? Keep scrolling for my Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship betting picks, but first…
2026 Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship details
Dates: November 5-8, 2026
Venue: Yas Links GC, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Course: Par 72 – 7,468 yards
Format: 72-hole stroke play with no cut
Purse: $9 million
Race to Dubai points: 9,000
Ryder Cup points: 2,000
Defending champion: Aaron Rai (-25)
2026 Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship TV schedule
US viewers can catch the action on the Golf Channel.
Thursday: Golf Channel from 2am
Friday: Golf Channel from 2am
Saturday: Golf Channel from 2am
Sunday: Golf Channel from 1.30am
All times ET
If you’re in the UK, you can watch live coverage on Sky Sports.
Thursday: Sky Sports Golf and Main Event from 4am
Friday: Sky Sports Golf from 4am and Main Event from 5.30am
Saturday: Sky Sports Golf from 4am and Main Event from 6.30am
Sunday: Sky Sports Golf and Main Event from 3.30am
All times GMT
2026 Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship prize money
The full Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship purse breakdown can be found here.
2026 Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship field
You can see the 70 players who qualified for the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship – as well as the 10 who opted out – here.
2026 Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship betting tips
Right, let’s get into my picks. Remember, all prices are correct at the time of publishing and subject to change. And please gamble responsibly.
The Banker: Matt Wallace
20/1 e/w (Coral, Ladbrokes 7 Places 1/5 Odds)
Matt Wallace shared the sad news of his mother’s passing this past weekend and I am sure that, in an ideal world, he would be able to take some time to process that situation. He also mentioned in his statement the desire to play this week, as that is what she would have wanted, and that he would be playing as hard as possible for her.
Wallace strikes me as the type that can take this incredibly difficult time and use it as fuel for success, so while it seems difficult to consider the idea of betting on someone that just lost their parent, I do think it is an element to consider.
Taking the emotional side out of it, Wallace is just playing incredibly consistent golf, and likes playing in this part of the world.
He finished 3rd at this course last year with a final-day 63, and he finished 20th the year before. Given he’s twice a runner-up in Dubai, once in the season-ending Tour Championship, he makes a lot of appeal here, in the Middle East.
A look at his current form shows four top 10s and six top 15s overall in his last eight starts across the DP World and PGA Tours, and he’s been a runner-up on both this year as well, first in Texas and then again in Italy.
We have always seen Wallace step forward when he’s had something big to play for, namely a Ryder Cup spot, and this week he will be looking to win for the first time as a dad, and to honor his mother. Given the way he’s playing, and the type of character he is, I wouldn’t put such an extraordinary feat past him here.
The Outsider: Adrian Meronk
30/1 e/w (BoyleSports 10 Places 1/5 Odds)
Adrian Meronk has returned to the DP World Tour with a bang, treading water with some good results for a while, before winning the Dunhill Links and finishing 3rd last time out in India, with a missed cut splitting the two results.
The Pole likes playing in the Middle East, with his sole win on LIV coming in Saudi Arabia, and four top-4 finishes across Dubai and the Ras Al Khaimah event. He almost won the latter on the Challenge Tour as well, losing in a playoff.
A 10th here three years ago, as well as shooting a 64 two years ago on his last visit both show his ability to play well at Yas Links, and as a winner of the Dunhill he has the links form many yearn for at this event. Kyle Phillips designed this course and Kingsbarns, which is part of the Dunhill Links rotation, and he also finished 3rd and one shot out of the playoff at the 2022 Dutch Open, which is held at another Phillips design in Bernardus.
In his last eight events, he has a win, a 3rd, and two more top 15 finishes, and that is the sort of form that will cast our minds back to 2022 and ’23, when he won four times across the two years.
Before he defected to LIV, Meronk was absolutely flying on the DP World Tour and he can again, now that he’s back in a comfortable and familiar environment.
As a five-time DP World Tour winner, who has beaten major winners in Adam Scott and Ryan Fox, among others, we know Meronk has what it takes to win an event of this magnitude, and I think he’s priced well enough to chance again here.
Francesco Molinari is our tipster’s long shot pick in Abu Dhabi. (Getty Images)
The Long Shot: Francesco Molinari
110/1 e/w (Paddy Power, Sky Bet 10 Places 1/5 Odds)
Francesco Molinari’s form has certainly cooled after a hot start to the year, but I think a return to the Middle East can bring the best out of him given his recent starts in the region.
In his last six starts in the Middle East, he has three top-5 finishes, one of which came when he finished 5th here in 2023, and since then he’s finished 5th at the 2024 Dubai Invitational and 4th in the Dubai Desert Classic earlier this year.
As an Open champion, we know all about Molinari’s links exploits as well, and given he’s played a lot of good golf in this part of the world, Yas Links seems the perfect storm for Molinari, who has now made six cuts in a row. This run, which is bookended by top-20 finishes at the Scottish Open and the Open de Espana shows he’s continuing to work his way back, and that start in Spain was certainly positive.
That top-20 last time out gives me confidence that he’s still taking steps in the right direction, and it can all come together in the Middle East, where he’s enjoyed playing, even when out of form.
The Bonus Bet: Niklas Norgaard
40/1 e/w (Betfred 8 Places 1/5 Odds)
Niklas Norgaard is back on the DP World Tour and playing well, with two runner-up finishes in his past seven starts, firstly at the British Masters and then again at the Dunhill Links, the latter a pleasing form line for this.
We also have evidence he enjoys this golf course, finishing 10th here two years ago, where he was also placed better that week, sitting 2nd after the second and third rounds.
With 2nd, 7th and 12th place finishes at the Dunhill Links, he’s shown a strong appetite for links golf, and his 10th place finish here two years ago adds to a 4th at the Dubai Desert Classic last year, to give him form in this part of the world as well.
Yas Links should appeal to Norgaard again then and, given he hit his irons well again last time in India, where he led after round one, he comes into this one in good form.
The Dane has plenty to offer at this level, and was showing as much before his short stint on the PGA Tour, and his game could go to another level with a win in this company, after a good win over Thriston Lawrence at The Belfry a couple of years ago.
2026 Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship tee times
The Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship tee times will be available on the DP World Tour website.
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