Soudal Open 2024: The European Swing on the DP World Tour begins in Belgium

Soudal Open 2024: The European Swing on the DP World Tour begins in Belgium

The DP World Tour returns this week with the Soudal Open which will be hosted by Rinkven International Golf Club just outside Antwerp.

There’s no rest for the wicked as the DP World Tour kicks off its European Swing with the Soudal Open just days after the conclusion of the second major of the year – the US PGA Championship – won by World No.3, Xander Schauffele.

Remarkably, the Soudal Open will be the first event played on European soil this season and the first since the 2023 Estrella Damn N.A. Andalucía Masters concluded in October.

This week begins a sequence of six tournaments out of seven taking place in Europe, with the only exemption being the US Open held midway through June.

Sebastian Söderberg, Adrian Otaegui, and Keita Nakajima were the top three golfers in the Asian Swing rankings, earning them a place at the US PGA Championship. Despite their recent good form, only the Swede made the cut, achieving a hole-in-one on the par-3 eighth hole during his second round.

The Soudal Open represents the start of the European Swing, with the winner taking home a bonus of $200,000 along with qualification for each of the ‘back 9’ events.

Who is playing in the Soudal Open?

There is a large Belgian contingent taking part at Rinkven this week, with former Ryder Cup winner Nicolas Colsaerts and Thomas Pieters leading the charge. Pieters has dropped to 468 in the Official World Golf Rankings due to his defection to the LIV Golf Tour and this will be his first event on the DP World Tour since the 2023 Open Championship.

European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald is in the field alongside one of his assistants, Edoardo Molinari. Their presence could perhaps give a few of the European entrants in the field an incentive to perform well, as the Englishman will be thinking ahead to the next Ryder Cup at Bethpage in 2025.

Final qualifying for the US Open is also being played this week, but it occurs much earlier in the week. There is a handful of golfers competing for a place in the US Open who’ll then jet off to Belgium to play in the Soudal Open, including Todd Clements, Yannik Paul, and defending champion Simon Forsstrom.

Off the back of a stellar final round at the US PGA Championship, Jordan Smith is in the field this week for the Soudal Open. The Englishman carded one of only six sub-65 rounds at Valhalla last week with a stunning 64 early in the day – he definitely showed the leaders what score was attainable. Coming to Belgium in good form and high spirits could earn Smith his first victory since the Portugal Masters in 2022.

The full list of entrants and how they qualified can be found here.

What is the format of the Soudal Open?

The Soudal Open is a normal strokeplay event played over 72 holes with a cut after 36 holes (two rounds) that sees the leading 65 players and ties make the final two rounds. The player who achieves the lowest score over four rounds will win the tournament.

Where is the Soudal Open being played?

Rinkven International Golf Club is located just 15km outside of Antwerp. The par-71, 6,924-yard course was designed by Belgian golfer and coach Paul Rolin in the early 1980s. The course has undergone various changes since then, expanding to include both a north and south course. See where Rinkven ranks among the best golf courses in Europe.

This week’s event will be a composite of the two, which features a mixture of woodland and parkland holes with water coming into play on a few of them.

Throughout the 18-hole layout, six of the par-4 holes are under 400 yards, which could see some aggressive play off the tee, especially from a few of the big hitters. The previous two editions of the Soudal Open held at Rinkven featured winning scores of -17 and -13, suggesting low scoring could be a common theme this week.

Who will win the Soudal Open?

Otaegui has won at Rinkven before. The first edition of the Belgian Knockout in 2018 saw the Spaniard claim victory over Benjamin Herbert in the final, winning his second tour title.

Since then, he has won three more times on the DP World Tour, with his most recent victory coming at the Volvo China Open at the start of the month, finishing with an 18-under par score in what turned out to be a 54-hole event.

Simon Forsström won the event last year, going wire-to-wire to claim his maiden win on the DP World Tour by a single stroke over fellow compatriot, Jens Dantorp. Course knowledge will be an advantage, but the Swede has failed to crack the top 20 across his previous five events.

Guido Migliozzi could be one to watch out for this week. The Italian finished second to Otaegui at the China Open a few weeks ago and has claimed victory at Rinkven before, winning the second edition of the Belgian Knockout in 2019.

How much will the winner of the Soudal Open receive?

The 2024 event will see a total prize fund of $2.5m, which is a rise from the $2m that was on offer last year.

The winner will take home a cool $425,000, which represents 17% of the total purse, a standard system in all DP World Tour events. Along with the prize money, players will also earn precious Race to Dubai ranking points.

How to watch the Soudal Open

UK viewers can catch all the action on Sky Sports

All times GMT

Thursday, May 23: Sky Sports Golf, 12.00

Friday, May 24: Sky Sports Golf, 12.00

Saturday, May 25: Sky Sports Golf, 12.00

Sunday, May 26: Sky Sports Golf, 11.30

US viewers can catch all the action on Peacock

All times EST

Thursday, May 23: Peacock, 07.00

Friday, May 24: Peacock, 07.00

Saturday, May 25: Peacock, 07.00

Sunday, May 26: Peacock, 06.30

Soudal Open Tee Times

Tee times and groupings for the Soudal Open can be found here.

SUBSCRIBE TO TODAY’S GOLFER: Print and Digital access, discounts and rewards!

About the Author

Ross Kilvington – Contributing Golf News Writer

Ross Kilvington is a freelance writer from Scotland who currently writes previews for Today’s Golfer, covering events on the DP World, PGA and LPGA tours along with the LIV Golf Series.

Ross holds a passionate interest in golf and tries to play as often as possible, although having two daughters under the age of 6 means his quest to break 80 will have to wait a little longer.

Despite first picking up a club aged 11, highlights are few and far between on the golf course.

An Eagle on the par-4 16th at Kinghorn is one that stands out (it doesn’t matter that it was only 290 yards).