Haotong Li is no stranger to battling golf demons.
The 29-year-old turned pro in 2011 and won his first European title in 2016. His career has ebbed and flowed since then. He made the 2019 Presidents Cup team but played only two matches. He considered quitting golf during a multi-year dip before beating Thomas Pieters to win the BMW International Open 2022.
However, Li has had only four top-10 finishes since his 2022 victory. That included a 2023 season in which his best finish was a T31 at the ISPS Handa Championship.
Golf can be a cruel sport, even for the world’s best. In his 14 years as a professional, Li has experienced it all. Each time his game slipped, he decided to put his head down, keep working, and trust that the game would eventually pay him back.
That belief paid off Sunday when Li held off Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen to win the 2025 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters at Doha Golf Club.
Li opened the day with a two-shot lead and quickly grew his advantage to four before the final-round nerves kicked in.
He bogeyed the 15th hole to open the door for Neergaard-Petersen but bounced back with a birdie to arrive at the 72nd hole tied with Neergaard-Petersen at 15-under. Li gave himself a 15-foot look for a walk-off birdie and poured it into the heart of the cup to exorcise three years of demons.
After the win, his fourth on the DP World Tour, an emotional LI opened up about his journey back to the winner’s circle.
“It means a lot,” Li told the broadcast after the win. “It’s like, I never thought I could come back in this position. Even after yesterday, I felt like this morning was really stress. I’m just so pleased I made that putt on the last. The whole day I was grinding, staying patient. Some wrong. Some good. I am just very glad I closed it out nicely.”
“I finally improved myself,” Li added.
