The Asian Tour begins its 2026 season this week in the Philippines, marking the second straight year the country has hosted the circuit’s opening event.

Set for February 5 to 8 at Wack Wack Golf & Country Club in Manila, the inaugural Philippine Golf Championship presented by the Philippine Sports Commission brings together a 144-player field competing for a US$500,000 purse.

The event follows last season’s Philippine Open, reinforcing the country’s growing role as a key destination on the Asian Tour calendar. The tournament is staged under the National Sports Tourism–Inter Agency Committee alongside the National Golf Association of the Philippines, with the Asian Tour serving as the official sanctioning body.

BingoPlus joins as an official sponsor, expanding its footprint in golf after serving as presenting partner of the International Series Philippines last year.

Strong field highlights season opener

Several established Asian Tour winners headline the field, led by former Order of Merit champions Sihwan Kim, Jazz Janewattananond, and Scott Hend.

Janewattananond enters the week carrying strong momentum after closing the 2025 season with multiple top-six finishes and four top-10s in his last eight starts, finishing eighth on the Order of Merit. He narrowly missed securing a LIV Golf League berth at the Promotions event in January.

Thailand’s Rattanon Wannasrichan enjoyed a career year in 2025, placing fourth on the Order of Merit following a victory at the Mercuries Taiwan Masters and two other podium finishes. Fellow Thai Suteepat Prateeptienchai arrives as the highest-ranked player in the field on the Official World Golf Ranking at No. 267.

Chinese Taipei’s Wang Wei-hsuan is coming off a breakthrough campaign that included three top-three finishes in a one-month span and a career-best ninth on the Order of Merit. Japan’s Jinichiro Kozuma and Lee Chieh-po also return to the Asian Tour after stints on the LIV Golf League.

Filipino presence and historic venue

A total of 42 Filipino players are in the field, with Justin De Los Santos the highest-ranked local on the OWGR and Justin Quiban finishing as the top Filipino on last season’s Asian Tour Order of Merit.

The tournament also features a strong mix of emerging talent, including 30 graduates from Qualifying School, led by winner Lin Yuxin and runner-up Shaurya Bhattacharya. Seventeen-year-old Korean Minchan Kim makes his professional debut after qualifying as a 16-year-old amateur.

Wack Wack Golf & Country Club returns to the Asian Tour spotlight for the first time since hosting the 2014 Philippine Open. The venue holds a storied place in golf history, having staged the 1977 World Cup of Golf and multiple Philippine Open editions since the tour’s formation in 2004.

The club’s East Course previously crowned winners such as Marcus Both, Frankie Minoza, Angelo Que, and Berry Henson, with Henson and Que both entered again this week. The iconic club, pronounced “Wark Wark,” takes its name from the call of native crows that also feature on its logo.