Rory McIlroy leads stellar field in Abu Dhabi HSBC Champs

The long and winding road on the 2025 Race to Dubai stops at its penultimate and 41st destination, Yas Links, this weekend.

The Abu Dhabi HSBS Championship, first of the DP World Tour’s two final Play-Off rounds, tees off on Thursday with a stellar field assembled – including world No 2 Rory McIlroy and the Tour’s breakout star Marco Penge, first and second in the Dubai rankings.

McIlroy has this tournament and next week’s final one in Dubai to clinch his seventh Harry Vardon Trophy – and fourth in a row – and most analysts reckon the overall season title is “his to lose”.

But first he must negotiate the Abu Dhabi hurdle – against the 72 top-ranked players on the DP World Tour.

McIlroy has had arguably the season of his life, breaking a lengthy major drought to win the US Masters and complete a career Grand Slam. He also won the Irish Open and was a key member of the European team that won the Ryder Cup.

McIlroy has been posted as 5.70 favourite to win the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

Next on the betting boards are Tommy Fleetwood (7.30), Tyrell Hatton (9.10), Ludvig Aberg (12.00), Bob McIntyre (14.20), Matt Fitzpatrick (14.80), Tom McKibbin (1980) and Penge (20.60).

South Africans in the mix include Jayden Schaper (54.00), Thirston Lawrence (61.00), Shaun Norris (300.00) and Dylan Naidoo (1,000.00).

In-form players whose names catch the eye are Shane Lowry (23.60), Patrick Reed (32.00), Kristoffer Reitan (41.00), Keita Nakajima (62.00), Dan Brown (76.00), Haotong Li (78.00) and Adrien Saddier (95.00).

Apart from the outright win option, Betway offers Top 5, 10 and 20 finishes, Top Scandinavian, Top Asian, a variety of random inter-group matches, a variety of head-to-heads, Winning Margin, first, second and third round leads and the likelihoods of a hole-in-one and of a playoff.

All Betway odds correct at time of writing and subject to change.