Both tournaments brought compelling golf to the same week, November 5–8, 2026. But for marquee names, the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship had the deeper star power pool. WWT brought plenty of talent; Abu Dhabi just brought a lineup that looked like it had reserved the front row.
Abu Dhabi brought the major-champion lineup
Abu Dhabi’s field featured six major champions: Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Patrick Reed, Adam Scott, Francesco Molinari and defending champion Aaron Rai. It also had Tommy Fleetwood and Tyrrell Hatton, both past Abu Dhabi winners, plus the season-long Race to Dubai leaders battling for the Harry Vardon Trophy (not to be confused with the PGA TOUR’s Vardon Trophy for low scoring average). That’s a lot of major hardware and season-long intrigue in one place.
WWT had some recognizable names and rising talent
The World Wide Technology Championship had its own draw: Tony Finau, Billy Horschel, Luke Donald and defending champion Ben Griffin, alongside emerging players including Jackson Koivun and Ryan Gerard. Past champions such as Matt Kuchar, Erik van Rooyen and Austin Eckroat added more experience to the field.
WWT brought a nice mix of established PGA TOUR winners and players building their profiles. Abu Dhabi, though, packed more major-winning and globally recognizable names near the top of the card. For star spotting, it was a little like comparing a very good guest list with one that needs a velvet rope.
Verdict: Abu Dhabi
For star power, Abu Dhabi wins. McIlroy, Rahm, Reed, Scott and Fleetwood made an unusually strong marquee group, while the Race to Dubai added meaningful stakes. WWT had worthy headliners and intriguing young talent, but Abu Dhabi had the bigger collection of major champions and international stars.
Winners’ take
The WWT Championship ended with 19-year-old Blades Brown winning a playoff after a closing 63. “I love golf, all the stuff that goes into it and I can’t wait for what’s next,” Brown said after his breakthrough win. At 19, he just won a PGA TOUR title; at his age, the rest of us were probably skipping class, nursing a hangover, or both.
In Abu Dhabi, Jon Rahm held off Tyrrell Hatton and Rory McIlroy for the title. “From last to first, pretty good feeling,” he said, reflecting on his turnaround from his previous start. That’s one way to improve your weekend.
Top 10 payouts
World Wide Technology Championship
| Finish | Player(s) | Payout |
| 1 | Blades Brown / -23 | $1,080,000 |
| 2 | Ben James / -23 | $654,000 |
| 3 | Michael Kim / -22 | $414,000 |
| 4 | Kensei Hirata / -21 | $294,000 |
| 5 | David Ford / -20 | $246,000 |
| T6 | Alvaro Ortiz, Denny McCarthy / -19 | $210,000 each |
| T8 | Jordan Smith, Séamus Power, Keith Mitchell, Ryan Gerard / -18 | $169,500 each |
Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship
| Finish | Player(s) | Payout |
| 1 | Jon Rahm / -23 | $1,530,000 |
| 2 | Tyrrell Hatton / -21 | $990,000 |
| 3 | Rory McIlroy / -19 | $567,000 |
| 4 | Francesco Laporta / -17 | $450,000 |
| T5 | Angel Ayora, Bernd Wiesberger, David Puig / -16 | $322,000 each |
| 8 | Jayden Schaper / -15 | $225,000 |
| T9 | Freddy Schott, Frédéric Lacroix, Nathan Kimsey, Matthew Jordan, Adam Scott / -14 | $169,380 each |
These two tours will battle it out week-to-week in 2027 to see which of their events has the best fields and the most eyeballs on the outcomes.