Golfer Gary Hurley is optimistic about continuing his strong start to the season as he prepares to compete in the DP World PGTI Open at Classic Golf & Country Club in India this week.
The West Waterford native, who spent the entirety of 2025 recovering from an injury, made a successful comeback in early 2026 with four positive weeks in South Africa. Hurley successfully made the cut in all four events on the Rainbow Nation, achieving a season-best ninth-place finish at the CIRCA Cape Town Open. These results have positioned him 26th on the early Road to Mallorca Rankings.
The 33-year-old is eager to carry this positive and pain-free momentum into the fifth event of his campaign. “It’s been good,” he remarked. “I hadn’t played a tournament in over a year, so it was nice to make all four cuts in South Africa. I don’t really have any pain anymore, which is obviously the number one priority. I know that I have the ability to earn promotion from the HotelPlanner Tour this year and I want to give myself the best opportunity to do that.”
Hurley, fresh from a four-week break, is excited to be back in action. Having overcome significant challenges in the past year, he believes his mindset will be crucial for success in Gurugram. “The course is good, I’m happy to be able to get out here and play,” he added. “Last year was difficult in moments. I’m still not 100 per cent, but I’ve figured out how to work with and around my injury. I’m trying to believe in myself a little bit more, and I believe that the game I have is good enough to win out here, which I think is important. I will be going in with that mentality, taking control of the controllables.”
Hurley joins a competitive field in India for this co-sanctioned event, which brings together players from the HotelPlanner Tour and the DP World Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI). Notable participants include PGTI Order of Merit leader Saptak Talwar and two-time DP World Tour winner Tom Lewis from England.
The opening round of the DP World PGTI Open commences at 6:50 am local time. Fellow Irish golfers Mark Power and Conor Purcell will also be teeing off early, at 6:50 am and 7:50 am respectively. Hurley is scheduled to start his round at 12:20 pm, playing alongside Badal Hossain of Bangladesh and India’s Mohd Azhar.