Golf stars John Parry, Johannes Veerman, and Elvis Smylie are set to tee it up at this year’s Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship, taking place in the kingdom from January 30 to February 2.
The current top three in the Race to Dubai Rankings are ready to continue their early season success at The Royal Golf Club.
Last season, the DP World Tour returned to Bahrain for the first time since 2011, and the 2025 event will once again be part of the International Swing on the Race to Dubai, with Bapco Energies, the integrated energy company leading the energy transition in Bahrain, as new title sponsor.
Fans can now secure free general admission tickets on platinumlist.net.
Parry, Veerman, and Smylie are aiming to get the International Swing off to a strong start following confirmation they will play three events in a row in the Middle East, teeing it up in Bahrain after the Hero Dubai Desert Classic and the Ras Al Khaimah Championship.
They join an exciting field in the kingdom that includes defending champion Dylan Frittelli, Major champions Padraig Harrington and Jimmy Walker, and fellow DP World Tour winners Thorbjorn Olesen and Jorge Campillo.
Parry soared to the top of the Race to Dubai Rankings after claiming his second DP World Tour title, and first for 14 years, at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open in December. That victory capped an incredible year in which he won three times on the Road to Mallorca to seal his promotion from the European Challenge Tour.
“I can’t wait to make my debut at the Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship as part of a great run of events in the Middle East,” said Parry. “I love playing in the region, so it’s the perfect place to start off the new year.
“Last year will be hard to beat, after having so much success on the Challenge Tour and getting the 2025 season off to a fast start with a DP World Tour victory, but my game is in a great place and I can’t wait for the challenges ahead.”
American Veerman also celebrated his second DP World Tour title at the start of the season, ending a three-year wait for victory when he lifted the trophy at the Nedbank Golf Challenge in December. The 32-year-old enjoyed an eye-catching finish to ‘Africa’s Major’ – making up a five-stroke deficit on Sunday – and he’s set for a second appearance in Bahrain after making his debut in the event in 2024.
Veerman said: “I really enjoyed the week at The Royal Golf Club last year and it will be great to head back with a spring in my step after the win in South Africa.
“This series of events in the Middle East is a great opportunity to continue building on all of the hard work of the past few years, and hopefully continue the early season success.”
Smylie earned the distinction of becoming the first winner on the 2025 Race to Dubai when he sealed his maiden DP World Tour title with a wire-to-wire victory on home soil at the BMW Australian PGA Championship.
The 22-year-old earned his first professional victory on the PGA Tour of Australasia just weeks before he secured his DP World Tour status with his two-shot triumph at Royal Queensland Golf Club, and he is looking forward to his first trip to the kingdom.
Smylie said: “It’s so exciting to take my game around the world and get the chance to add Bahrain to the list of new places I’ll tee it up this season.
“My first DP World Tour win back home was an important moment that has opened up a lot of opportunities, and I’m hoping to continue that form by getting this run of events under my belt at the start of the year.”
The Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship follows the Team Cup, the Hero Dubai Desert Classic – the first Rolex Series event of the season – and the Ras Al Khaimah Championship as one of eight events on the International Swing.
Top stories for today:
VIDEO: Bahrain travellers held in India with 1.9kg gold
Government schools may soon offer IB programme
Hawk-eye cameras plan
&uuid=(email))