Niall Lyons picks out three to follow in the 2026 Abu Dhabi Championship at Yas Links.
Abu Dhabi ChampionshipSee All Odds
The Abu Dhabi Championship is played at Yas Links, Abu Dhabi, UAE. After four successful stagings of this fine event, Yas Links continues as host for the Abu Dhabi Championship and for punters that is most welcome. This venue is beginning to develop a profile of contenders, and that is always beneficial to narrow the field of potential winners.
Pieters won the first renewal here having had a really good record in the region prior. The runner-up, Cabrera Bello, is a winner of the Scottish Open on links, and with the wind that blew that year it was no surprise there were a couple of players with a similar profile in contention.
Three years ago a former winner of the Dunhill Links, Victor Perez, won whilst another Scottish Open winner, Min Woo Lee, was runner-up. Alex Noren was another Scottish Open winner to make the top 5, whilst two former Open Champions, Francesco Molinari and Padraig Harrington, also posted top-5 finishes.
In 2024 three-time Dunhill Links winner Tyrrell Hatton was runner-up whilst another winner of that event, Thorbjorn Olesen, was tucked in behind in 3rd. Last year a former Scottish Open winner in Aaron Rai came out on top. The winner may not come with this kind of profile, but there will undoubtedly be a handful of them on the leaderboard come Sunday afternoon.
2026 Abu Dhabi Championship Tips
| Player | Bet | Odds | Stake | Terms | Bookmaker | Bet Here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jon Rahm | Win | 18/1 | 3.5pts Win | Win only | AK Bets | Click Here |
| Adrian Meronk | Each-way | 50/1 | 1.25pts E/W | 1/4 odds, 5 places | PricedUp | Click Here |
| Bernd Wiesberger | Each-way | 55/1 | 1.25pts E/W | 1/5 odds, 7 places | Coral, Ladbrokes | Click Here |
Jon Rahm at 18/1 (Win)
Matt Wallace announced the recent passing of his mother this week and it wouldn't be the first time that such a huge event in somebody's life has a positive impact in their profession. Wallace has extra motivation now and possibly a little less pressure on his shoulders. Around the 20/1 mark just doesn't interest me enough in a field of this quality, though.
I see much bigger upside in taking the risk that Jon Rahm bounces back to form here this week, and I'll take the 18/1 available with the bookmakers and up to 22.0 on the exchanges. The Spaniard welcomed his fourth child (braver man than me) into the world last month, and the suspect performance at Wentworth in September may have been partly down to that preparation.
It may also have been down to the turmoil in his golfing career and the impending situation of re-joining either tour. With the DPWT he has a tour he is welcome to play on for now, and sitting 51st in the rankings he needs a solid week to secure his place in the field in Dubai. With LIV 2.0 now sidelined for him, the clarity could mean we see a return to the Rahm we know and love.
There is little doubt that McIlroy and Fleetwood are not firing on all cylinders now, and he may not need his Sunday best here to win. He sits at the exact same price this week as he does for the Masters next April, and despite the recent poor form I'm happy to take the risk with him here given his links pedigree.
Adrian Meronk at 50/1 (Five Places)
My second bet in this event goes the way of recent winner Adrian Meronk. Form in the Dunhill Links has been a massive pointer towards contenders here down the years, and I can see Meronk going close to landing a second victory in the space of four weeks. There was a slight hangover from the win in Spain where he missed the cut, but a 3rd-placed finish in India showed his performance in Scotland was no flash in the pan.
With PGA Tour cards still up for grabs over the next couple of weeks, there is plenty to play for for the likes of Meronk inside the top 25 in the rankings. McIlroy and Fleetwood are far from their best, whilst the likes of Adam Scott don't strike me as a winner in waiting either. Reed isn't performing like he was earlier in the year and Hatton hasn't had a good year at all.
Skov Olesen remains winless to date and this looks up for grabs. Ayora came close to making the staking plan at what might be a nice price, but I'll stick with a recent proven winner whose tournament is a huge guide for this.
Bernd Wiesberger at 55/1 (Seven Places)
I'm happy to take the risk with Bernd Wiesberger at anything above 50/1. Like Aaron Rai last year, Wiesberger is a former winner of the Scottish Open, at the Renaissance back in 2019, and with a couple of runner-up finishes on Irish links courses he fits the profile perfectly here.
Rai, Waring and Wiesberger all have one thing in common: they're not known for being the best of putters. Thomas Pieters is another who fits into that category, and in fact he ranked outside the top 30 in putting when he won here four years ago. That suggests there is some grace on the greens here, which is a positive for the Austrian.
His iron play recently has been terrific and he ranks 12th on tour in that department. Having won already this season, I see little reason not to include him here, and he has some extra motivation to play well as he currently holds the spot to gain a PGA Tour card.
Live Abu Dhabi Championship Odds
