Nolan on verge of DP World Tour 

LINED UP: Liam Nolan on the practice green prior to the Grand Final at Club de Golf Alcanada on Wednesday in Alcudia. Picture: Octavio Passos/Getty Images

Liam Nolan is on the brink of earning a DP World Tour card for 2027. 

The Galway golfer heads into this week's HotelPlanner Tour Grand Final ranked 10th in the order of merit with the top 15 winning cards.

The 26-year-old will be the sole Irish competitor in the 45-player field at the Club de Golf Alcanada in Mallorca. It is the fifth consecutive year the course has hosted the season finale. 

Nolan - who only turned professional last year and also played in the 2026 Grand Final - has had a consistent season, making the cut in 15 of his 21 starts. He clinched his maiden win on the tour with a four-stroke victory at the Abu Dhabi Challenge earlier this month where he carded four rounds of 66 or better, moving him up 31 places in the rankings. He backed that up with a tie for fifth at the Hainan Open. There were also three other top 10 finishes. 

The top seven players in the rankings - currently led by Denmark's Hamish Brown - are guaranteed cards but everyone else in the field mathematically has a chance of moving into the top 15.

Nolan, who will tee off on Thursday with 808.18 points, sits 117.33 points ahead of Englishman Matthew Southgate in 15th. 

The winner at Alcanada will be awarded 640 points, second place 440 points, third 280, fourth 240 and fifth 200, all the way down to 45th place, who will earn 20.80 points.

Finland's Tapio Pulkkanen has a shot at history when he tees off. A top three finish for the Finn, who is currently fifth, would give him a chance of becoming the first player to win the season-long Rankings twice after his triumph in 2017.