New to the Race to Dubai schedule, this week's inaugural DP World India Championship marks the penultimate event in the Back 9. Here are your five things to know.
History made with new event
This week sees the start of a new chapter in the DP World Tour’s long association with India with the inaugural DP World India Championship. The $4 million tournament – the largest prize fund ever offered for a DP World Tour event in India - takes place at the historic Delhi Golf Club and is co-sanctioned with the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI). The DP World India Championship underscores India’s growing influence as a destination for elite golf and as a strategic market for DP World. As the Tour’s title partner since 2022, DP World is reaffirming its commitment to golf with this new tournament. It complements its broader sporting footprint in India, which includes partnerships with the Delhi Capitals, and its grassroots programmes like the ‘second life’ container initiative and ‘Balls for Birdies’ campaign.
“We are delighted to extend our commitment to golf in India by establishing the new DP World India Championship alongside our valued partner DP World,” said Ben Cowen, DP World Tour Chief Tournament & Operations Officer. “DP World have been crucial to the development of this exciting new event, and we look forward to building on our shared vision to grow the game in the country.”
Course return
This week marks the Tour’s return to Delhi Golf Club for the first time since 2016. Originally established in the 1930s, the Lodhi Championship Course hosted the inaugural Indian Open in 1964 and was redesigned by Peter Thomson in 1977, with further enhancements by Gary Player Design in 2019.
It was the host for the first DP World Tour event to be held in India, the EMAAR-MGF Indian Masters, and then the venue for the Hero Indian Open in 2015 and 2016, with all three events won by home players: Anirban Lahiri (2015), and S.S.P. Chawrasia (2016). And at just 6,912 yards, we should be in for a distinctly old school challenge in the Indian capital.
Rory back in action
Career Grand Slam winner McIlroy makes his first appearance in India this week with a return to competitive action after helping Europe win the Ryder Cup at Bethpage. With two wins already on the Race to Dubai this season at the Masters Tournament and Amgen Irish Open, the World Number Two will be looking to strengthen his grip on the Race to Dubai title ahead of the DP World Tour Play-Offs.
“I’m excited to not only tee it up in India for the first time but also visit a country that I’ve always wanted to explore,” he said. “I’m proud to play in the inaugural DP World India Championship. I’ve always enjoyed playing a global schedule and as I have previously said, there is tremendous potential to grow golf further in the country. This is a great opportunity, and I can’t wait to play in front of Indian golf fans.”
Inside the field
There is no shortage of star power teeing it up, with McIlroy one of four members of the victorious European Ryder Cup-winning team in action. Joining him are Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland and Shane Lowry, while Luke Donald - their Captain in both Rome and New York - also makes up part of the impressive international field.
From the U.S. Ryder Cup side, American Major winner Brian Harman and two-time PGA TOUR winner Ben Griffin are in the field hoping to delight the fans in Delhi. They will be joined by a host of winners on the 2025 Race to Dubai, including American Michael Kim, who claimed his first DP World Tour win in France last month, five-time DP World Tour winner Thriston Lawrence of South Africa and French duo Martin Couvra and Adrien Saddier. More than 20 Indian players will be aiming to impress on home soil, including two-time DP World Tour winner, Shubhankar Sharma, 18-time global winner Anirban Lahiri, seven-time global winner Shiv Kapur and Veer Ahlawat, who secured his 2025 DP World Tour card by topping the previous season’s PGTI Rankings.
All to play for
The DP World India Championship is the eighth of nine events in the Back 9 on the 2025 Race to Dubai, building towards the season-ending DP World Tour Play-Offs. While McIlroy is the favourite to win the Harry Vardon Trophy for a fourth time in a row and seventh overall, there is plenty else still to be decided over the remaining weeks of the season. The top 70 available in the Race to Dubai Rankings after the Genesis Championship in South Korea at the end of October progress to the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and then the top 50 after that qualify for the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. For others, time is of the essence as they try to ensure they hang on to their cards for next season - the top 110 in the standings are guarenteed to do so.
