The Hangzhou Open makes its second appearance on the Road to Mallorca this week as the penultimate event of 2025 takes place at Hangzhou West Lake Golf Club. Here’s all you need to know…
Nicklaus design
Designed by 18-time Major Champion Jack Nicklaus, Hangzhou West Lake Golf Club will offer a championship-style test this week. The course, famous for its natural scenery, boasts a 7,252-yard par-72 layout, with each nine providing a very different test, according to Nicklaus himself.
With four par fives, each measuring over 550 yards, and four testing par threes, including the 230-yard 16th, scoring opportunities could come at a premium in the second of back-to-back HotelPlanner Tour events in China. The 453-yard par four 15th also promises to provide one of the sternest tests this week, with each of the closing six holes set to be challenging throughout the four rounds.
On the front nine, the short par four fifth will be one of the best scoring opportunities, with the 313-yard hole drivable for the longest players in the field.
Final chance
This week’s event in Hangzhou is the last chance for players to confirm their place in the field for the Rolex Grand Final supported by The R&A, which gets under way on October 30 at Club de Golf Alcanada. Currently, the top 45 players on the season-long Road to Mallorca Rankings are projected to reach the HotelPlanner Tour finale later this month, but with 750 additional points on offer this week, everything is still to play for.
Irishman Max Kennedy currently holds the all-important 45th position, 13 points ahead of German Hurly Long, who sits outside the provisional cut-off. Frenchman Julien Quesne, Spaniard Albert Boneta and Dane Anders Emil Ejlersen are among those looking to break into the top 45 once the Hangzhou Open concludes this week.
Promotion history
Last year’s inaugural event at Westlake International Golf Club saw Irishman Conor Purcell seal a four-stroke victory before going on to earn promotion to the DP World Tour. However, it wasn’t just the 28-year-old who used last year’s Hangzhou Open as a springboard for success.
Spaniard Angel Ayora, England’s Jack Senior and Finland’s Oliver Lindell, who shared second place, have all gone on to impress on Golf’s Global Tour this year. Ayora currently sits 23rd on the Race to Dubai and finished inside the top ten at last week’s Open de España presented by Madrid, while Lindell also lies inside the top 35 on the season-long Rankings. Senior, who graduated last year following his second-place finish in Hangzhou, is currently on track to keep his DP World Tour playing privileges. Those who impress during the 2025 edition could be set to follow a similar trajectory.
