Joaquin Niemann is coming back to defend his ISPS HANDA Australian Open title on the Melbourne sandbelt later this year with an eye on the 2025 majors.

Niemann, the Chilean who put on a spectacular display in storming home on the final day at The Australian Golf Club in 2023, is chasing the world ranking points that he needs to get into the four majors next year, aside from which he has a high regard for the “prestige” of our Open.

As a LIV Tour player, his ranking and therefore his access to the four men’s major championships are problematic. He is currently outside the top 100 in the official rankings although he is the No. 2 ranked player on the LIV Tour.

The 25-year-old played three of the four majors in 2024 without a top-20 finish, but he is not yet in those fields for 2025. The Australian Open in recent years has offered three spots in the following year’s Open Championship for the winner, not to mention the rankings points, which is part of the lure this November.

Niemann is excited to return, acknowledging that he has “got all my memories” from 2023 when his climb into the sponsors’ marquee to get a line of sight to the 18th green at The Australian went viral.

He hit that second shot from the corporate area over the stands and on to the green and went on to win in Sydney, and he has gone on to win twice on the LIV Tour in 2024.

Niemann said he believed the Australian Open was “one of those tournaments that deserves the best players in the world”.

He loves coming to this country. “I feel like a good golf tournament and a proper tournament has to have a great golf course, and Australia (is) always the leader in that. A great crowd, always the leader in that as well.

“Golf in Australia has always been amazing and they always try to live up to the standard, but yeah, obviously you can't say it's a major, but if you look around, I mean you got the US Open, it's still an Open, then you got the British Open, which obviously they are majors.

"Yes, I don't think you can put the Australian Open as a major, but it's one of the Opens that it has to be up there. I don't think there is any other open in any other country that come near close to that.

“And I think it's because the amount of good players they have because of so many good players (are) coming out from Australia and the golf and how powerful is golf in Australia, you have this amazing program from Golf Australia.

“They deliver great players. I remember being a junior golfer and always seeing Australia being the hardest team to beat. They always have a strong team, the way they look on the uniform, the coaches, they have a great system for the game of golf.”

Niemann’s championship defence was announced today by Golf Australia, along with the return of the women’s winner in the past two years, Ashleigh Buhai of South Africa.

Min Woo Lee is the biggest name of the Australians to commit so far to the Open, which is at Kingston Heath and Victoria golf clubs from 28 November to 1 December.