Since 1929, the Australian PGA Championship has crowned 95 champions. This year, someone will write Chapter 96. Royal Queensland hosts the season-opener for the 2025-26 DP World Tour from November 27-30, and the field is loaded—156 players, nine from LIV Golf, all chasing AUD $2.5 million.

Last year, it was Australian teenager Elvis Smylie who took the title. Can he do it again? Will an American claim it? Or does a LIV star leave Brisbane with the trophy? Let’s take a look at three star golfers who are looking strong to win the historic Kirkwood Cup.

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Joaquin Niemann

Niemann is one of the biggest names in the field this week at the Australian PGA Championship. The numbers tell you everything you need to know. In 2025, he won five times on LIV Golf. He came in second in the individual standings, only missing out on the championship to Jon Rahm in a thrilling game at Indianapolis.

His Australian experience is a plus. Joaquin Niemann has already won the 2023 Australian Open, so he knows how to win in Australia. He’ll be playing with the kind of confidence that comes from always winning. Royal Queensland’s tough greens and narrow fairways might be good for his accurate ball-striking.

Carlos Ortiz

Then there’s Carlos Ortiz from Mexico. This year, he achieved the best major championship performance of his career. At the U.S. Open held at Oakmont, he tied for fourth place. During that week, he ranked second in strokes gained on approach shots and first in greens in regulation. This wasn’t just luck; it showcased his exceptional ball-striking skills.

Ortiz ranked seventh in the 2025 LIV Golf standings and consistently finished in the top ten in every event he played. Last year, he won his first LIV event in Houston, and in the 2024-25 season, he secured two more victories on the Asian Tour. At 34 years old, he is in peak form. His short game and accuracy around the greens make him a formidable competitor on any course, particularly at Royal Queensland, which is a layout that highlights those strengths.

David Puig

At 23, Puig is the wild card who could surprise everyone at the Australian PGA Championship. In 2025, he was the fourth-best player in LIV Golf in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee, making him one of the circuit’s fiercest drivers. His length gives him chances to make birdies that most people can’t. In 2025, 27% of his rounds were below par, which was the second-best in the league.

He’s in ninth place in LIV’s individual standings, ahead of big winners like Patrick Reed and Brooks Koepka. In his first seven LIV events of 2025, he finished in the top 10 three times, including two fourth-place finishes in a row in Adelaide and Singapore. The young Spaniard is still looking for his first LIV win, but there’s no denying his skill. And let’s not forget he is “regarded to be among the brightest prospects in the game.”

Those three lead the conversation, but keep in mind six other LIV players could steal headlines, too, at the Australian PGA Championship. They are Abraham Ancer, Jose Luis Ballester, Matt Jones, Marc Leishman, Sebastian Munoz, and Cameron Smith. Ballester arrives fresh off a Saudi International victory. Leishman and Jones have a home advantage. The rest? They’re capable enough to change those predictions. Four days in Brisbane, nine LIV players with something to prove. This sounds exciting!