DP World Tour posts an evacuation plan at Yas Links as 11 of the top 70 skip Abu Dhabi

Players arriving at Yas Links on Monday for the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship found a notice explaining what happens if the UAE sends an emergency alert to the public's phones. Play stops at once.

"If the UAE authorities issue a mobile phone alert to the public at any point during the week whilst on site, play will be suspended immediately, signalled by a long blast of the air horns, as per the procedure for a dangerous situation," the notice reads. "Players and caddies should evacuate the course as per the evacuation plans and proceed to the clubhouse." Tour staff will give updates there and on the Player Portal, according to the full text Golf Monthly published after putting coach Jacobo Pastor shared it on X.

The tournament starts Thursday, and the DP World Tour says it's going ahead. "We have plans in place for every aspect of every tournament on the DP World Tour and that is the case again this week," a spokesperson told Front Office Sports. The same spokesperson said "everything remains firmly on course" for next week's DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.

Why the alert plan exists

Front Office Sports ties the security worries to what it calls the U.S.-Iran war. Golfweek's Tim Schmitt points out that the State Department has listed the UAE, Abu Dhabi included, at Level 3, "Reconsider Travel," since an Oct. 23 advisory that cites terrorism and armed conflict and warns of Houthi attacks on civilian airports and other infrastructure in the region.

On Sunday, Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE's president, said the country was hoping for a breakthrough but was "braced for the worst," FOS reported.

The tour had looked at other options. Golf Monthly cites earlier reports that Spain's Real Club de Golf Sotogrande was explored as an alternate site, and GolfMagic says Portugal was considered too. Elsewhere in the region, the Asian Tour's PIF Saudi International, scheduled for Nov. 18-21 in Riyadh, was postponed indefinitely last month.

Who isn't coming

Abu Dhabi is the first of two DP World Tour Play-Off events, open to the top 70 available players in the Race to Dubai. FOS counts 11 of those 70 skipping it. Here they are by Race to Dubai rank, per FOS:

The top 50 after Abu Dhabi make the Dubai finale, Nov. 12-15, so a player already inside that number can skip this week and still play next week. FOS says Lowry, Alex Fitzpatrick, Lee, Neergaard-Petersen and Åberg could still play in Dubai, and Fox, whose agent cited a heavy travel year, is planning to. Kim, Rose and Gerard gave up their chances by not entering.

Matt Fitzpatrick, who won the DP World Tour Championship last year, said in September he wasn't "that comfortable" going back to the region and that becoming a father in August had changed his thinking. MacIntyre's management told GolfMagic he won't travel to the Middle East because of the conflict.

Who is

The field is still strong. Golfweek lists defending champion Aaron Rai, Race to Dubai leader Eugenio Chacarra, Rory McIlroy, Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Adam Scott and Jon Rahm, who is making his Yas Links debut. The top five in the Race to Dubai are all entered, and the purse is $9 million.

Round one is Thursday. Our This week in golf preview has Golf Channel's Abu Dhabi windows in Eastern time.