This Thursday marked the start of the Link Hong Kong Open, the classic Hong Kong open of the Asian Tour which in this 2025 edition has become a true ‘springboard’ towards the Masters and the Open Championship. The winner of the tournament, if not already qualified by another route, will earn a ticket to compete in next year’s Augusta National tournament, while the best-placed player not exempt by other criteria will be in the British major, which will take place at the prestigious Royal Birkdale in July 2026.
This direct path to two of next season’s four Majors is something Northern Irishman Tom McKibbin (-10) is keen to seize at all costs. He has taken the lead in the first 18 holes, delivering an impressive scorecard of 60 strokes, a record at the Hong Kong Golf Club, to position himself as the sole leader of the standings. His lead is just one stroke because this first round has been a festival of birdies, but Jon Rahm‘s teammate in the Legion XIII has shown from the first stroke what he is capable of.
With eight birdies and an eagle, without error, he has swept through the spectacular private club founded over a century ago that serves as the tournament venue. Yet even so, he hasn’t managed to open a significant gap against players like Jazz Janewattananond (-9), Kiradech Aphibarnrat (-8), Louis Oosthuizen (-8), or Thomas Pieters (-8). The latter two names are taking advantage of the LIV Golf winter break to keep adding and give themselves an extra chance to be in two of the 2026 Majors (only the Masters in the case of the South African, who already has a spot for the Open).
Among the three Spaniards who have decided to pack their bags for Asia to compete in this event, the most promising performance has been from Josele Ballester (-6), who with a great round of 64 strokes, with six birdies and no errors, has positioned himself just a step away from the top 10 and only four strokes from the lead, a more than recoverable deficit on a course where red numbers and very low scores are the order of the day. An idea that David Puig (-3) and Eugenio Chacarra (-1) must also share, despite their more restrained start.
The player from La Garriga is in a tied 51st place, hampered by a tough double bogey on the par-five 3rd hole, which affected the rest of his round. He was able to bounce back by achieving five birdies and making no further mistakes to avoid losing too much ground. The Madrid native, on the other hand, had three errors that resulted in bogeys and held him back, although his birdie production was somewhat less than necessary. All three, along with Patrick Reed (-5), who is defending his title (and already has a spot in Augusta), will seek a result tomorrow that allows them to stay alive over the weekend with the dream of the Masters and the Open on the horizon.
