NEWS 

NEL MONDO.GOLF . Open de Portugalon the Road to Mallorca Rankings.

By@Pierbattista Patrizia 

By@Mirella Pierbattista    BY@Elisa Nardocci Avv. 

By@EXIBI 

By@Redazione

Pedro Figueiredo is hoping to take advantage of the home comforts this week’s Open de Portugal will provide as he tries to cement his spot in the top 15 on the Road to Mallorca Rankings.

The man from Portugal, currently 13th in the season-long Rankings, is a Lisbon resident, so will be commuting from home as he looks to win the country’s national open for the first time.

Figueiredo says he is looking forward to the rare pleasure of sleeping in his own bed whilst competing this week.

“It’s always special to play at home,” he said. “This week I can sleep in my own bed which is very different from a normal week. Hopefully I’ll have a lot of family and friends coming so definitely a special week for me because of that and also because it’s one of the last events of the year. I’m in a good position in the Rankings so it’s also important for that.”

The 35-year-old is a popular figure in the world of golf around Portugal’s capital, with the Portuguese crowd expected to come out in good numbers to support him.

But Figueiredo says the excitement of playing in Portugal will outweigh the pressure of trying to impress on home soil.

“I think I’ve always embraced the challenge of playing at home. Maybe there is an extra pressure which I’ll feel on the first few holes on Thursday, but at the same time I think the positives of it overcome the pressure there might be from playing at home.

“It just feels very relaxing,” he added. “It almost feels like a week off in a way because you get to be at home and see the people that you get to see when you’re in your home country.

“You don’t have to do the extra work on the course because I’m very familiar with the course, with the area, with the food and with the people so that makes it very easy to have a tournament at home.

“I don’t have anyone on the bag but hopefully over the weekend I will, my friends are working and apparently working is a priority rather than coming to support me! I’ve been trying to tell people to come and watch because I think this is a great venue, it’s close to Lisbon so there’s no reason not to come here and enjoy the tournament.”

Figueiredo has enjoyed a strong 2026 season on the HotelPlanner Tour, amassing five top ten finishes with his best coming in the form of a third place at the Jonsson Workwear Durban Open.

And despite the fact he is yet to secure his second career HotelPlanner Tour title this season, he is in a good position to graduate for the second time to the DP World Tour, having previously done so in 2018.

“It’s been a good season. I’ve played quite solid, had some top fives, top tens, I haven’t had that win that helps a lot in terms of points, and for the confidence and all that but all in all I’ve been playing well. I come to this tournament in a good place and hopefully can have a good week at home which would be very special.

“I think the year I graduated was a very special week for me, it was the first time I made it to the DP World Tour and I made it right on the number. I think that experience can help this year because I’ve been through that and know what it feels like, but in the end I’m very comfortable even if I don’t get my card and I think that plays in my favour.

“I’m just going to do my best and see where that takes me, hopefully it takes me to the DP World Tour but even if it’s not I’m fine with that. All I can do is play my best golf and see where it takes me.

Figueiredo, the third highest ranked Portuguese golfer in the world, leads his nation’s charge in the Rankings this season. He will be hoping his prior knowledge of this week’s venue, that he played throughout the winter, will helps boost this charge even further.

“It’s a course that I’m very familiar with and I think it suits my game. It’s very old-school, tree-lined, tight fairways, small greens. It’s not too long so I think it plays to my strengths so hopefully I can show that from Thursday to Sunday and have a good result.”

Figueiredo joins a strong field this week at PGA Aroeira No.1, including two-time winners MJ Daffue and John Gough, in the final European event before the Grand Final in November.

He tees off at 1:50pm local time on Thursday, alongside Finn Tapio Pulkkanen and German Anton Albers, with play beginning at 7:40am.