The first of back-to-back HotelPlanner Tour events in China gets under way this week with the Hainan Open at Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club. Here are three players to keep an eye on…
Form horse: JC Ritchie
JC Ritchie’s recent form on the Road to Mallorca cannot be ignored as the HotelPlanner Tour heads east. The South African arrives in Sanya fresh off sealing automatic promotion to the DP World Tour following a third win of the season at the Italian Challenge Open. Ritchie’s triumph at Golf Nazionale was his second in as many weeks following his victory at the Open de Portugal at Royal Óbidos, and the 31-year-old will tee it up in Hainan eyeing an eighth career win on the HotelPlanner Tour.
What’s more, Ritchie impressed during last year’s edition of the Hainan Open at Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club, where he ended the week in sixth position. The South African made 20 birdies and two eagles during his four rounds 12 months ago, and given his recent form, an improvement this time around feels likely. With Scotsman David Law and Frenchman Oihan Guillamoundeguy looking to close the gap at the top, Ritchie will need to continue his fine form if he’s to hold onto Number One spot on the Road to Mallorca Rankings ahead of the penultimate event of the season in Hangzhou next week.
Local boy: Yanhan Zhou
Chinese star Yanhan Zhou will be looking to replicate his China Tour form on the HotelPlanner Tour stage when he tees it up in Sanya this week. In total, 48 China Tour golfers will join the leading 68 available players on the Road to Mallorca, with Zhou arriving currently topping the China Tour’s Order of Merit.
Zhou has already won four times in 2025 and made the cut at both the Hainan Classic and Volvo China Open on the DP World Tour earlier in the year. The 17-year-old is making his first start on the HotelPlanner Tour since last year’s Hangzhou Open, where he ended the week in a tie for fifth. Despite missed the cut in this event 12 months ago, the teenage sensation will be eager to showcase his impressive China Tour form and post a career-best finish at Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club.
Outsider: Wilco Nienaber
South African Wilco Nienaber has endured a difficult run of form since picking up his second HotelPlanner Tour victory at the NTT DATA Pro am back in February. A top 30 finish, coming at the Dutch Futures, represents the 25-year-old’s best result since the Road to Mallorca departed South Africa eight months ago.
However, currently 26th in the Rankings and with promotion to the DP World Tour still in sight, Nienaber could be well-suited to this week’s challenge in Hainan. Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club is set to reward the longer hitters, with short rough and wide fairways providing a generous test off the tee. Nienaber, one of the longest hitters on the HotelPlanner Tour, could have ample opportunity to attack pins with a short iron in hand, potentially giving him an edge over the field. Having finished in a tie for 11th last year in Sanya, Nienaber finding a welcome return to form in seemingly comfortable surroundings would significantly boost his chances of returning to the DP World Tour for the first time since 2022.
