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90/191.00 Robin Williams is a big hitter who starts fast
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30/131.00 Rising star David Puig finished like a train last week
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66/167.00 Joe Dean was fifth last week and plays well in the wind
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Weather forecast for Thursday
The forecast says it's going to be windy and should blow at around 20mph throughout Thursday.
It's not exactly hot either with temperatures only just pushing towards 70 degrees.
Course designer Colin Montgomerie wanted this to be a links-style experience in the desert so the weather is helping him get that wish.
There's no obvious draw bias with it being consistently breezy.
Big hitters have done well on this course so it should allow Robin Williams to wield the driver plenty.
The South African is 18th for Driving Distance on the DP World Tour this season and also has good stats in the wind so he could be an interesting prospect.
Williams made a good start in desert conditions at the Dubai Desert Classic two weeks ago when ninth after a first-round 68 and he was seventh after 18 holes of the Nedbank Golf Challenge in December.
Widen the lens and he's ended day one in the top 10 in four of his last eight starts.
Let's give him a go from his 11am tee time.
Back Robin Williams each-way
Williams is in a three-ball with David Puig, the joint-favourite in this market at 30/131.00, and I'll play the Spaniard too. Hopefully they bounce off each other.
If momentum counts here then Puig has a bundle of it after making five birdies in his final six holes to close with a 65 in Ras al Khaimah.
That was good enough for third place and added to his top three at the Open de Espana and fourth at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
The latter could be a really good pointer given the links/wind correlations.
The LIV golfer, who spent his college days at Arizona State, had a spell in late 2023 when he was the first-round leader three times in four starts.
More recently he was ninth after the opening lap in Ras al Khaimah last week while two tournaments earlier he opened with a 66 to sit second after the first lap of the International Series Qatar.
Another huge driver of the ball, back the rising star at 30/131.00.
Joe Dean certainly knows how to handle windy conditions having finished in the top 25 on his Open Championship debut last summer.
The Englishman was fourth after round one at Royal Troon and two events later he finished the first 18 holes of the Danish Golf Championship in fifth.
In October, Dean was the first-round leader at the Open de France and he showed up strongly again in Ras al Khaimah last week, ending day one in ninth and eventually finishing fifth.
The 30-year-old from Sheffield gives it a decent tonk off the tee and is also an 11am starter although he fires off from the 10th.