Staff WriterIf women’s golf needed a season-opening statement, it’s just unpacked its suitcase in Riyadh. The PIF Saudi Ladies International is back this week at Riyadh Golf Club (11–14 February), kicking off the 2026 Ladies European Tour calendar and serving as the first stop on the PIF Global Series — a four-letter phrase that, increasingly, carries five-star ambition.
And who better to headline the return than Charley Hull and Carlota Ciganda: two Solheim Cup stalwarts, two serial competitors, and two players who don’t need much encouragement to go low when a course starts winking at them.
Hull — English world number five and the 2024 winner of the Series’ individual title — arrives with the kind of history at this venue that tends to bring a player’s shoulders down and the birdies up. Asked what suits her about Riyadh Golf Club, she didn’t dress it up like a marketing slogan.
Charley Hull: I like it because I can be quite aggressive around here. It’s a scoreable golf course, a fun track to play. I’ve got good memories around here. Every time I come back, it makes me smile, and I just enjoy it.
That’s a golfer’s version of a love letter: short, honest, and full of intent.
A bigger stage, a louder spotlight
One of the reasons the PIF Saudi Ladies International keeps drawing top names is the scale — not just the staging, but what it represents. Women’s golf has spent years fighting for the same oxygen men’s sport breathes without thinking. Big purses and global platforms don’t solve everything, but they change what’s possible.
Hull was clear on what Golf Saudi’s backing through the PIF Global Series has meant — for visibility, for opportunity, and for what she’s seen on the ground in Saudi Arabia.
Charley Hull: Yeah, it’s really important. It has put us on a bigger stage. Having this women’s $5 million event brings more eyes to the game. It’s great to have an equal event to the men’s PIF Saudi International. Thanks to Golf Saudi for all their support, which has really helped grow the women’s game. Especially here in Saudi Arabia, when I first came here, there were no girls on the driving range. Now, during the pro-am, I can see there’s quite a few. It’s nice to see.
That last line matters. Growth isn’t a brochure; it’s girls on a driving range who weren’t there before.
Ciganda on equal prize money: “a big statement”
Ciganda has been coming to Saudi Arabia for “four or five years,” and if Hull speaks like a player ready to attack pins, the Spaniard speaks like someone who’s watching the bigger picture come into focus.
When asked what equal prize money signals, she didn’t hesitate.
Carlota Ciganda: It’s a big statement. I think they’re the only ones doing that, so it’s obviously very nice for us. I’ve been coming to Saudi Arabia for four or five years, and everything is growing, lots of sporting events. Yesterday I went to watch padel and saw a lot of women there. It’s nice to see what they’re trying to do with all the sports and events. I always enjoy playing here.
Equal prize money doesn’t just reward performance — it tells every young athlete watching that the ceiling isn’t quite as low as it used to be.
“Best shape” in years — and scoring could get spicy
If you’re the sort of fan who enjoys a leaderboard that looks like a pinball machine, Ciganda has good news about conditions at Riyadh Golf Club.
Carlota Ciganda: The course is probably in the best shape of the last two, three, four years. The greens are a lot nicer than last year. The fairways, the rough – everything is really nice. I think it’s a good setup and a fun course. The weather’s going to be nice and warm, so scoring should be low because the ball flies a lot. It will be a fun week.
Translation: bring your birdie pencil, and maybe a spare.
Hull echoed the sense that the course is maturing — not just greener, but finally settling into itself like a place that knows what it wants to be.
Charley Hull: I think the golf course is a lot lusher and a lot greener than it has been in the last four years. But I think as well, it takes a golf course a few years to settle in, and I feel like this golf course is really settling in now, and it’s starting to get character. This is the best I’ve seen this golf course, so it’s nice to be back here.
When elite players start talking about “character,” it usually means the course is ready to bite back — at least a little.
Hull’s 5K mission derailed, but the mindset remains
Hull’s athleticism is part of the package — the sort of energy that makes you think she’d happily sprint to the first tee if you told her it counted on the card. Last year she had a running target: 5K in under 20 minutes. How did it go?
Charley Hull: It was going really well, I think I got to nearly sub-20 [minutes]. And then I tore the ligament in my ankle, so I haven’t really been able to run since.
Golfers are masters of adjustment. When one door closes, they usually try to hit a 4-iron through a window.
Ciganda’s 2026 goal: keep winning, keep loving it
Ciganda, meanwhile, offered the most refreshingly straightforward season ambition you’ll hear all year.
Carlota Ciganda: To keep winning. I’m getting older, so it’s not getting easier, but I still love competing. I want to be in contention at tournaments, at Majors, keep winning and enjoy the journey.
That’s not a resolution — that’s a veteran’s blueprint.
Advice for the next generation: make it fun, make it yours
With the PIF Saudi Ladies International shining a bright light on women’s golf in a growing sports market, it’s only right the conversation turns to what comes next — and who comes next.
Ciganda’s message to young girls was simple and quietly important.
Carlota Ciganda: To have fun. Golf can feel a bit lonely and not as fun as other sports when you start, but I think it’s important to enjoy it, get out on the course, and play holes. It’s encouraging to see so many more women and girls playing here now than when we were first here, so it’s always nice to come back and see that the game is growing here.
Hull doubled down — and delivered the kind of advice you can picture being shouted across a junior chipping green with a grin.
Charley Hull: Yeah, it’s really good. I just say to young kids, just go out there and have fun. It’s like a playground out there. Just be down at the golf club. All the juniors have chipping competitions. Put yourself in lies that you’ll never think you will get out of, and try to get out of them, because it’s just all part of the fun, and it helps you improve. At the end of day, it’s just sport, you’re not going to die if you hit a bad shot, so just go out and enjoy it.
There’s your masterclass: practice like a kid, compete like a pro, and stop acting like one bad swing ends civilisation.
Solheim Cup veterans — but not looking backwards
Both players have seen enough Solheim Cups to know nostalgia is lovely, but it doesn’t move the needle on Thursday morning.
Hull, asked if it feels strange being one of the veterans now:
Charley Hull: Not really, I just see it as another event. The team has changed a lot, but this will be my eighth Solheim Cup, so I’m looking forward to it.
Ciganda matched that perspective — proud, but present.
Carlota Ciganda: We started the same year and have played the same number of Solheim Cups. It’s always special, but there’s a lot of golf before September, so we focus week by week. Charley and I love playing for Europe, and it’s a week we always enjoy.
Why the PIF Global Series matters (and why this week is a marker)
Beyond the leaderboard, the bigger arc is visibility — the consistent, repeated showing up of women’s golf on platforms that make it harder to ignore.
Carlota Ciganda: I think it’s really very important. We need partners like PIF and Golf Saudi as they are really important for us. They are changing women’s golf. I think all the sporting events that they are bringing to Saudi Arabia are really important for this country, for young girls to see. Hopefully, they will want to do this one day.
Hull added the player’s-eye view: better destinations, better events, better care — the stuff that makes a long season feel sustainable.
Charley Hull: We get to play in so many different destinations, which I think is really good. One thing I have noticed is that when we come to the Centurion Club for the PIF London Championship, the amount that they have going on at the event is great because you see so many young girls there. They’re just really well-run events. It’s not just the golf; they look after us, and that’s pretty important because we’re on the road so many weeks in a row, so it’s nice to have some home comforts.
Tickets and info
Tickets for the PIF Saudi Ladies International are now on sale and can be purchased at webook.com/en/events/pif-golf-ladies-int
For more information on the PIF Global Series and the upcoming Saudi Ladies International please visit: www.pifglobalseries.com
