After a two-week break, the Road to Mallorca returns to China for the first of back-to-back events in the country. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the Hainan Open which gets under way on Thursday…
Return to Sanya
The Road to Mallorca returns to Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club for a second consecutive year this week after the course first emerged on the HotelPlanner Tour schedule in 2016. The 7,200-yard layout, designed by American design company Mr. Nelson Haworth of N&H, is boarded by the picturesque Luhuitou Park and the South China sea, providing one of the more scenic backdrops this year.
This year will mark the sixth time Sanya Luhuitou GC has hosted a HotelPlanner Tour event. The parkland layout has also been a qualifying site for the DP World Tour’s Volvo China Open.
Back-to-back
The Hainan Open marks the first of two back-to-back HotelPlanner Tour events in the Middle Kingdom, with next week’s Hangzhou Open the last stop before the Rolex Grand Final supported by The R&A. Along with holding an important place on the Road to Mallorca schedule, each event in China offers an increased prize fund of $500,000 with 750 additional Ranking points available to the field.
As the HotelPlanner Tour heads east, those who piece together two impressive performances could all-but secure playing privileges on the DP World Tour for the 2026 season.
Past winners
Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club has proven a low-scoring venue on the HotelPlanner Tour during the five previous editions of the event. Back in 2017, during Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club’s second appearance on the Road to Mallorca, South African Erik van Rooyen sealed a two-stroke victory after ending the week with a four-round total of 18 under, carding three rounds of four under par or better in the process.
Francesco Laporta, the 2019 victor in Sanya, made three eagles and 15 birdies en route to a first HotelPlanner Tour title, just weeks before he triumphed at the Rolex Grand Final. Finally, during last year’s event, Hamish Brown made 24 birdies over the four days to eventually come through a play-off against Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines.
Top 46
As the HotelPlanner Tour heads East, attention will be on those looking to secure their place at the Rolex Grand Final later this month. Currently, the top 46 available players are set to tee it up in Mallorca, but with additional points on the line over the next two weeks, players outside the cut off could make a late bid for promotion.
Frenchman Julien Quesne currently occupies the final Rolex Grand Final spot, while two-time DP World Tour winner Tom Lewis is one of several players looking to jump inside the top 46 upon the conclusion of next week’s Hangzhou Open.
Co-sanctioned
The top 68/70/72 available players on the Road to Mallorca Rankings will tee it up at the Hainan Open this week, with the China Golf Federation completing field with the Middle Kingdom’s best talent. Yanhan Zhou currently leads the China Tour’s Order of Merit, having made the cut at the Volvo China Open and Hainan Classic earlier this year. Now, back in Hainan, the teenage sensation will be looking to build on his last HotelPlanner Tour start, where he finished in a tie for fifth at the 2024 Hangzhou Open.
