The DP World Tour and the China Golf Association have announced a strategic partnership which expands the pathway for China Tour players on to the DP World Tour and confirms the co-sanctioning of tournaments until at least 2025.
The formalisation of the long-term association between the two organisations will provide the leading player on the CGA-sanctioned China Tour with an exemption in category 17 on the DP World Tour for the following season.
In addition, the next player from the China Tour’s Order of Merit will earn an exemption in category 12 on the Challenge Tour for the following season, while the leading entrant to the DP World Tour’s Qualifying School will be exempt into Final Stage, with further exemptions for the second to fourth placed entrants into Second Stage.
As part of the DP World Tour’s commitment to supporting professional golf in China, the co-sanctioned Volvo China Open will return to the Race to Dubai in 2024 after an absence of four seasons, with this year’s tournament taking place at Hidden Grace Golf Club in Shenzen from May 2-5.
Two Challenge Tour events will also take place in each of the 2024 and 2025 seasons, with the Hainan Open (October 10-13) and Hangzhou Open (October 17-20) already announced as part of the Challenge Tour’s 2024 Road to Mallorca last month.
Ben Cowen, the DP World Tour’s Chief Tournament Business Officer, said: “We are delighted to be strengthening our long-term partnership with the China Golf Association through this Strategic Partnership. As well as reaffirming our commitment to tournament golf in China, the various pathways included as part of this agreement will allow more access for Chinese players to compete on the international stage. This will enable more talented Chinese players to follow in the footsteps of players such as Wu Ashun and Li Haotong, both of whom are multiple winners on the DP World Tour.”
Tian Xiaojun, Deputy Vice Chairman of the China Golf Association, said: “The European Tour Group was one of the earliest international tour organisations to collaborate with the CGA. Over the years, the two parties have maintained a close connection and established a profound friendship, and the upcoming strategic partnership agreement even brings such friendship to a whole new level. CGA and the China Tour is embracing global golf with an open attitude, and welcoming players from all over the world to witness the transition.”