Kimsey happy to trust DP World Tour on Abu Dhabi safety
Nathan Kimsey says he is happy to put his trust in the DP World Tour and the organisations around it over player safety ahead of the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship. He told BBC Sport that the tour has had contingency plans in place and has kept players aware of the situation.
The tournament starts on 5 November. It is the penultimate event of the 2026 DP World Tour season, and the setting is the Middle East. Conflict between Iran, the United States and Israel has raised questions for players about travel to the region. Matt Fitzpatrick voiced concerns about going there in September. He is not on the entry list for Abu Dhabi.
Kimsey is in the field because of his place in the Race to Dubai rankings, the season-long table that orders players by their results. He sits 72nd. The top 70 are eligible to play in Abu Dhabi, so he makes the cut for the field by two places. That is a narrow margin, and a useful reminder of how much a few weeks of form can matter.
He represents Stoneham Golf Club in Southampton on tour. This year he has played 28 tournaments and made 19 cuts. Making the cut means surviving the first two rounds, and it is the score that decides who plays the weekend. He has five top-10 finishes and has earned £448,000 (€538,000) in prize money.
The wider debate about the region has been running for some time. In September, DP World Tour chief executive Guy Kinnings confirmed the plan to keep the season-ending Play-Offs in the Middle East despite the conflict. Ryan Fox and Shane Lowry will not play in those Play-Offs because of security concerns, according to The Mirror.
The season then finishes in Dubai, seven days after Abu Dhabi. The top 50 in the rankings qualify for that finale. For players near the edge of those numbers, every event in the next two weeks carries weight.
Kimsey has been on tour for some years, and his comments are his own view of the tour's preparations. Whether the other players in the field share that view will become clearer as the week goes on, when the first tee shots are struck in Abu Dhabi.
