Sami Valimaki

Beat Spain’s Jorge Campillo in a play-off for his second DP World Tour title at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters in October.

Two runner-up finishes and three further top 10 placings took him to 12th spot on the Race to Dubai rankings, easily therefore securing an instant return to the Open Championship.

Made his debut at Royal Liverpool in 2023 thanks to his second place at the Joburg Open, the first event of the Qualifying Series.

A member of the Finland side which won the 2018 European Amateur Team Championships, Valimaki also represented them in that year’s Eisenhower Trophy World Championship and played for Continental Europe as they beat Britain and Ireland at the St Andrews Trophy.

Having reached as high as 10th on the world amateur rankings, he turned professional the following season on completing his military service and before the end of the year had won four times on the ProGolf circuit and once on the Finnish Tour.

With an eighth-place finish at the DP World Tour qualifying school he stepped straight up and in only his fifth start of the 2020 season lifted the Oman Open at the third hole of a play-off against Brandon Stone.