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Connor Syme is set to make his first defence of a DP World Tour title at this week’s KLM Open as he returns to the scene of his breakthrough victory at The International 12 months ago.
The Scot arrives in Amsterdam “pain-free” again after recovering from a back injury that disrupted his early 2026 campaign. After struggling for form in the opening weeks of the season, Syme sustained the injury while weight training at home during a break following the Joburg Open. He later retired on his return at the Volvo China Open.
Since then, he has made three starts, making the cut at the Soudal Open in Belgium, and now lines up for his third event on the European Swing in as many weeks as he defends the title he won in his 182nd DP World Tour start.
That victory came in testing conditions in Amsterdam, with the tournament disrupted on three occasions by strong winds and heavy rain. Syme held his nerve to secure a two-shot win in a week defined by difficult scoring conditions.
Now striking the ball freely again, the 30-year-old believes his shot-making will be key on a course where control and patience proved decisive last year. With inclement weather again forecast in the Dutch capital, Syme draws confidence from his upbringing on the east coast of Scotland, where similar conditions are familiar.
Local favourite Joost Luiten will once again lead Dutch hopes as he targets a third KLM Open title, having previously won in 2013 and 2016. One of only five Dutch winners since 1912, Luiten also attended the event as a teenager in 2003 when Maarten Lafaber became the first home player in the DP World Tour era to win their national open.
Rising American Mason Howell makes his DP World Tour debut in Amsterdam, continuing his rapid rise after winning the U.S. Amateur and featuring at both the U.S. Open and Masters.
The 19-year-old, who lists Rory McIlroy as his “idol”, has already made four PGA TOUR starts but is still seeking his first professional cut.
Player quotes
Connor Syme: “So cool to be back. It’s not super unusual, but obviously it’s great that it’s around the same venue and getting to properly reminisce on the memories from last year. I’m really excited, really excited.
“I think to be honest, in the last couple of weeks it’s just been nice to be kind of pain free. My form at the start of the year was a little bit here nor there and I had six weeks off and I injured myself at the start of those six weeks.
“So, I was kind of behind the eight ball a little bit, went back to China a little bit too early and hurt myself a little bit more. So, it’s been quite difficult.
“It’s the first time I’ve been properly injured, to be honest, in my full career. There’s always stuff you want to try and improve on.
“I think it’s quite similar to home in a lot of ways. Although the undulations are obviously a lot different, it’s quite severe in a lot of areas, so it’s not really as linksy there.
Joost Luiten: “I played with Sepp Straka on the Saturday last week and it was unbelievable to see the crowds and for me it was great practice. I know it’s going to be busy this week so for me I really used it as practice.
“It’s great to see that people are still supporting their local golfers and their local heroes, and I know it’s going to happen this week, hopefully not only when I’m playing but also when the other Dutch guys are playing there will be a lot of orange on the golf course.
“I think it’s really important that the Dutchies do well and be up there on Sunday and that always creates an extra vibe to the tournament so let’s see if we can do that again.
“The course plays really tough. The way they set it up with the high rough, I think that’s what it needs otherwise it’s an open field, so I think the set-up is really good. The weather has been tough the last couple of years.
Mason Howell: “There’s some great players in the field this week as there is every week on the DP World Tour so just seeing how my game stacks up against some of the world’s top pros, that’s my goal.
“I just want to put four solid rounds together and see what I can take away from playing a different style of golf than what I’m used to and see how my game adapts.
“I want to have a lot of fun with my family that are here and soak it all in, it’s not often you get opportunities like this.
“Watching videos from last year and hearing what people are talking about, it’s definitely going to be different, the wind is going to be a lot more than I’m used to.
“I was able to play in the Masters this year alongside Rory which was truly special, Rory was my idol growing up. Rory was always the player I wanted to watch when I was younger on TV so to be able to walk the fairways with him at Augusta National was super special, watching his game throughout the week and he was very chatty, we had some good conversations.
“He had a six-shot lead after the two rounds I played with him, and he was hitting his driver all over the place so that said a lot about how he got the ball in the hole and that was really cool to see and I learned a lot from it.”
2026 KLM Open
Venue: The International, Amsterdam, Netherlands
2025 Champion: Connor Syme (SCO)
Prize Fund: $2,750,000
Race to Dubai: Tournament 22 of 42
European Swing: Tournament 4 of 6
Race to Dubai Points: 3,500
