The stated aim has always been to surpass the 23 weeks of golf and US$35 million in prize money on offer last year, but in the current climate officials are also seeking to take the next step in raising the Tour’s profile.

The Hong Kong Open

The city’s flagship tournament will again be played towards the end of the year, as the race to capture the series’ order of merit, and the guaranteed spot in LIV Golf that brings, reaches its conclusion.

Taking place for the 63rd time since its inception in 1959, the Open is scheduled for November 21 to 24, at Hong Kong Golf Club in Fanling.

“We are looking to build on last year’s successful tournament, boosting the event and the club’s stature in the game by welcoming back a wonderful selection of world-class golfers and fans from right across the Greater Bay Area and beyond,” Andy Kwok, the club’s captain, said.

International Series Oman

This week’s tournament at Al Mouj Golf may well offer a glimpse of what the future could hold for the Tour, the series, and LIV in a fractured golf landscape that shows little sign of healing.

The season-opener is taking place a week before the LIV event in Jeddah, and as such has attracted 21 LIV golfers, including two full teams, Torque GC and Stinger GC.

That added the likes of Joaquin Niemann and Louis Oosthuizen to a field already boasting Matt Wolff, Anirban Lahiri, Abraham Ancer and Malaysian Open winner David Puig.

The pathway from the Asian Tour to LIV Golf is already well established, and officials have previously hinted at far closer ties, with the potential for the series and team events outside North America mirroring each other on a regular basis.

Indeed, there is an argument to be made for formally tying both together, with the series stops acting as the equivalent of Monday qualifiers.

It doesn’t hurt, of course, that the series offers the world ranking points LIV has so far been denied.

International Series Macau

Another event happening in proximity to a LIV tournament, both in terms of geography and time.

The week after the circuit makes it first appearance in Hong Kong, the series marks the first of two Asian Tour events in the casino hub, with the Macau Open pencilled in for October.

Niemann and his Torque teammates, Mito Pereira, Sebastian Munoz and Carlos Ortiz, will again be there, with Munoz saying their presence was “testament to the fact that we do get along really well and we don’t mind spending more time with each other”.

The tournament at Macau Golf and Country Club from March 14 to 17 will also include the likes of Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia, Graeme McDowell, Kevin Na and 2023 order of merit winner Andy Ogletree.

Asian Tour talent includes local hero Taichi Kho, and the final three winners on last year’s International Series: Thailand’s Sarit Suwannarut (China Open), New Zealander Ben Campbell (Hong Kong Open) and India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar (Indonesian Masters).

McIlroy says absence of LIV players diminishes PGA wins, wants to ‘beat the best’

Next steps

Officials are well aware of the dangers of pigeonholing the series as “just a pathway to LIV”, and the decision to start giving it a more independent feel reflects that.

While the riches of making a LIV team are undeniable, the potential for a lucrative career for an Asian golf professional on their own tour has never been as bright.

An updated slogan, ‘This IS … Everything’, was said to highlight “the significance of the series to players from all over the world in today’s evolving golf ecosystem”.