Rory finishes the year in style...Final results, prize money

 DP World Tour : Tour Championship Results 

Rory McIlroy finished the 2024 DP World Tour season in style by winning the DP World Tour Championship as he was crowned Race to Dubai champion for the sixth time.

After a third placed finish at last week's Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, only South Africa's Thriston Lawrence could deny McIlroy from claiming his sixth Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex of his career.

Lawrence needed to win and for the World Number Three to finish in 12th or worse for him to overturn McIlroy's huge advantage, but his challenge never materialized as he carded a one-under-par total at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

The Northern Irishman shared the lead after the first and third rounds, and looked in total control when he burst three shots clear thanks to a run of four straight birdies from the second.

Rasmus Højgaard remained in touch and capitalized on bogeys at the ninth and 13th from McIlroy to sit alongside him at the summit at 13 under.

However, birdies at the 16th and 18th paid dividends for McIlroy as he secured his third triumph on the Earth course by two shots to complete a season-finale double.

"It means a lot. I've been through a lot this year, professionally, personally and it feels like a fitting end to 2024," McIlroy said.

"I've persevered a lot this year, had close calls and couldn't get it done. So to be able to get over the line. I'm really pleased with the way I finished and thankfully I hung on on a tough day and got it done.

"It's been a long year, my 27th tournament, which is a lot to me. Looking forward to a little bit of downtime.

"I have a lot of friends and my family here in Dubai so I'm sure we'll have a good night tonight."

Former World Number One Adam Scott and Ireland's Shane Lowry carded final round 68s to finish in a tie for third at -11 under alongside Rozner, who birdied the last to earn a PGA TOUR card for next season.

Englishman Tyrrell Hatton was one shot further back in solo sixth, while Scot Robert MacIntyre wrapped up the top ten alongside Chilean Joaquin Niemann, Japan's Keita Nakajima and Swede Jesper Svensson at -9

edit**** Canada's Aaron Cockerill made the top 50 a feat in itself, and I can only imagine he will chalk up making the playoffs to experience. 77 74 71 77 +11 T49 will see him go into the postseason in South Africa if he does, 49th. He received $48,000 for his efforts.

Dual Membership

For the second year running, as part of the Strategic Alliance between both tours, the top ten players on the final Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex who were not already exempt on the PGA TOUR for 2025 earned dual membership.

The formalized pathway has proven a success, with Matthieu Pavon and Robert MacIntyre each winning PGA TOUR titles in 2024. Pavon claimed the Farmers insurance Open, while MacIntyre won the RBC Canadian Open, before going on to fulfil a lifelong goal of winning the co-sanctioned Genesis Scottish Open on home soil.

In addition, six of the nine players who took up PGA TOUR membership are in line to remain fully exempt for the 2025 PGA TOUR season by finishing inside the top 70 in the FedEx Cup standings or the top 125 in the FedEx Cup Fall standings.

Here are this years ten: 

Rasmus Højgaard, Thriston Lawrence, Paul Waring, Jesper Svensson

Niklas Nørgaard, Matteo Manassero, Thorbjørn Olesen, Antoine Rozner

Rikuya Hoshino, Tom McKibbin.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

McIlroy, Hojgaard, Rozner lead DP World Tour Championship.. Sunday tee times

 DP WORLD Tour : Tour Championship Leaderboard Tee Times

Rory McIlroy put himself in position to secure a possible end-of-season double after sharing the third-round lead with Rasmus Højgaard and Antoine Rozner at the DP World Tour Championship.

The World Number Three only needs a top 11 finish in Dubai to seal a sixth Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex crown of his career and is also chasing a third title on the Earth course.

He began the day one shot behind overnight leader Rozner, but it was Højgaard (66) whose brother Nicolai won it last year, who surged clear at the top after four straight birdies from the second.

The Dane climbed to -12 to move three clear at the eighth, however, McIlroy (68) carded four birdies and a dropped shot in a six-hole stretch from the seventh to sit alongside Højgaard at the summit.

Both players missed chances to nudge in front and could not be separated as they parred their way home, with Rozner (69) carding an eagle at the last to make it a three-way tie at the top ahead of the final round of the 2024 DP World Tour campaign.

Chile's Joaquin Niemann mixed five birdies and two bogeys and Swede Jesper Svensson was flawless in his 68 to sit in fourth at -10, while Englishman Tyrrell Hatton 71 is one shot further back in sixth at -9

Northern Ireland's Tom McKibbin carded a 67 to join Japan's Keita Nakajima 70 at -8

Ryder Cup stars Shane Lowry 71 and Robert MacIntyre 69 are in the top ten with former World Number One Adam Scott 69 and England's Matt Wallace 70 at -7

edit *** Canada's Aaron Cockerill had his best round of the week with 4 birdies, a lone bogey and was heading for a 69 when he got in trouble off the tee at the par 5 14th leading to a costly double bogey 7 for a final -1 71 +6 total, projected to finish at #49 in the Race to Dubai.

To highlight how tough this Earth course can be if you are not careful Tommy Fleetwood with 4 top 5's here, shot 75 today and Billy Horschel a 77 while England's Dan Bradbury hasn't broken par in 54 holes 74 75 76 is dead last at +9.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Rozner leads Tour Championship with 65, Full results, Saturday TEE TIMES

 DP World Tour : Tour Championship Leaderboard Tee Times

Antoine Rozner produced a flawless second round of 65 to earn a one-shot lead at the DP World Tour Championship.

France's Antoine Rozner hit a second round 65 to take the lead at the World Tour Championship in Dubai (FADEL SENNA)

The Frenchman could only have dreamt of being at the top of the leaderboard at this stage when teeing up at the 15th hole at two over par on the first day.

However, he finished with four straight birdies, including a missed eagle putt from six feet at the last, which proved to be the catalyst for his sparkling Friday on the Earth course.

The 31-year-old rolled in seven birdies to card the lowest round of the week at Jumeirah Golf Estates and sits one clear of Ryder Cup stars Tyrrell Hatton and Rory McIlroy at nine under par.

"Just no mistakes. Of course, I putted really well," Rozner said. "It's one of those days where everything goes in and I had a ton of fun out there.

"I think with my caddy [Patxi Londaitz] we had really good fun, and yeah, it was one of those days where everything goes right and took advantage of it. It was a lot of fun.

"I'm going to try to focus on having two solid days and see how it goes at the end. I think if I can have a chance on Sunday to either win it or get one of those cards, yeah, it would be great."

McIlroy made a fast start with three birdies in his first four holes to take control of the tournament. 

Another followed at the seventh to climb to nine under, only to bogey the eighth and tenth to gift the lead to Rozner.

He parred his way to the par-five last, where he produced a stellar second shot inside 15 feet and brushed the left edge of the cup with the eagle putt which would have seen him rejoin the lead.

Hatton had to grind his way into contention after bogeying the fourth, hitting back by draining a monster 43 foot birdie putt at the sixth before adding another at the eighth.

The World Number 18 holed from eight feet at the tenth to pick up a shot and when he holed a clutch putt from eight feet for birdie at the 15th, he was one adrift of Rozner.

Chile's Joaquin Niemann, the ISPS HANDA Australian Open winner last December, carded an eagle, five birdies and two bogeys in his 67 to sit at seven under in sole fourth.

Dane Rasmus Højgaard, Sweden's Jesper Svensson and Irishman Shane Lowry all carded second-round 67s to climb to six under, with Japan's Keita Nakajima also at that mark.

English trio Waring, Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Wallace round off the top ten, four shots off the lead.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

McIlroy wins 6th Race to Dubai Championship. Tour Championship Rd2 results Rd3 TEE TIMES

 DP World Tour : Tour Championship Leaderboard Tee Times

Let's start with the fact that Rory McIlroy has won his 6th Harry Vardon trophy as the 2024 Race To Dubai winner after only 36 holes of this Tour Championship.

He is T2 this week, after 36 holes, 67 69 -8 along with Ryder Cup colleague Tyrrell Hatton 67 69 -8.

His only challenger Thirston Lawrence had to win to have any chance, but he will head into the weekend T34 73 71 E.

The leader with a low score of the day, a brilliant bogey free 7 birdie 65 is Frenchman Antoine Rozner, 70, 65 -9

The leader board is crowded, nobody running away with it, in fact there are 10 players within 4 shots including Shane Lowry 71 67 -6, Tommy Fleetwood 71 68 -5 and Rasmus Hojgaard 71 67 -6  

Part of the reason is the wind has been up this week as opposed to Abu Dhabi, gusting at 25kph in the afternoon with more of the same on tap for Saturday.

Canadian Aaron Cockerill playing in his first Tour Championship is currently 50th 77 74 +7. He played better today off the tee, made his first birdie, and another 14 pars, with 3 bogey's.

More to follow

Bryan Angus

DP World Tour Championship : Rd1 results, TEE TIMES

 DP World Tour : Tour Championship Leaderboard Tee Times

Rory McIlroy strengthened his grip on the Harry Vardon Trophy after an opening round of 67 saw him share the first-round lead with Tyrrell Hatton at the DP World Tour Championship.

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland hits off the first tee during the first round of World Tour Golf Championship in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (Altaf Qadri/AP Photo)

It is a two-horse race at the top of the Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex, with the 35-year-old starting the season-ending event in Dubai with a healthy lead of 1,785.02 points over South Africa's Thriston Lawrence.

With 2,000 points on offer the winner, McIlroy only needs a top ten finish to secure a sixth Race to Dubai crown of his career - which would match the tally of his father Gerry's idol Seve Ballesteros.

Playing partners Hatton and Paul Waring, who sealed the biggest victory of his career at last week's Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, hit the front at four under after they each birdied the 14th hole, but the Northern Irishman followed suit shortly after.

Hatton became the first person to reach five under with a brilliant birdie at the penultimate hole, only to be matched by McIlroy's 48-foot putt at the same hole to share the lead with Englishman on the Earth course.

"I thought I played well. I hit the ball pretty well. I gave myself plenty of chances, plenty of looks," McIlroy said.

"I want to go on from here and win the golf tournament. I've opened up with a really good score, but I need to go out and play similarly over these next three days, not just to try to win the tournament, but also to try to get the job done in the Race to Dubai.

"I'm under no illusions that that was probably Thriston's worst day. If he goes out and has three good ones, I still need to go out there and play some very solid golf."

Hatton, a five-time Rolex Series winner, carded seven birdies and two dropped shots in a round which surprised the 33-year-old.

"To be honest, I feel like the score was better than it felt," he admitted. "I felt I was tinkering over most tee shots and at times, I felt like my misses were bigger than perhaps they have been over the last month or so, month and a half.

"But at the end of the day, to shoot five under, you have to, I guess, play fairly solid golf. And in my head, I don't really know what that is."

Waring, who is based in Dubai and is a member at Jumeirah Golf Estates, reached the turn in 32 before mixing a bogey and birdie on the back nine to sit alone in third at four under.

American Billy Horschel was one of seven players at three under, sitting alongside Matt Wallace and Australian Adam Scott, who both held the lead in some capacity during the first round, Alex Fitzpatrick, Denmark's Niklas Norgaard and Japanese duo Keita Nakajima and Rikuya Hoshino.

Lawrence, who needs to win to have any hope of denying McIlroy, birdied the last to sign for a one-over 73 which included five bogeys.

edit *** At the bottom end of the field, it wasn't the day Aaron Cockerill was expecting He was out early with a bogey at the 1st when his drive caught a fairway bunker, and added 4 more for a 5 bogey no birdie +5 77 T47 while his playing partner Frenchman David Ravetto was a shot worse in last place +6 78.

Looking at his round in detail on Shotlink, Aaron didn't have his best day driving the ball, caught several fairway bunkers on this tough Earth course. On the bright side he did make 13 pars.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus  (edit)

Insight from Ireland's player/ analyst Paul McGinley on 2024..

 Ahead of the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, Paul McGinley gives his reflections on the 2024 season, some of the remarkable storylines to emerge and the challenge ahead for Rory McIlroy.

It’s been a very good year for the DP World Tour in very challenging times. 

We have really thrived and done well, particularly since the FedEx Cup finished in September. I think we've had some great storylines since then, some great events to get the top players coming back and populate a lot of those fields. We had Jon Rahm playing well in Spain, Rory McIlroy playing well in the events he played in, Tommy Fleetwood too, as well as the European players who have been playing all year on the DP World Tour and competing well against the world's best players.

The Earth course hosts the final event of the DP World Tour season this week

I think the new-look schedule panned out well. The Genesis Scottish Open was another huge success, a great performance again by Robert MacIntyre and we've been fortunate in so far as the big names at each event, whether they be a home player or maybe the favourite, have done well. Angel Hidalgo did brilliantly at the Spanish Open, going head-to-head against Rahm and taking him down. It's been overall a pretty good season, with really good storylines across various events.

The ten PGA TOUR cards are brilliant for members, and this is a members’ organization. The job of the executives is to serve the members and they're doing that with record prize funds and a pathway onto the PGA TOUR. So as a player on the DP World Tour, you've never had it any better than it is right now. The opportunities for these guys to have good seasons and go and throw their hand at the PGA TOUR is great. It's a great pathway. We've always had that pathway, but now it's formalized and if they do get the card on the PGA TOUR, it is a very good category, getting them into a lot of events. Of the nine players, because Adrian Meronk didn’t take his up, that went forward, six kept their card to retain their playing status for another year. So that's impressive. It shows you the standard of the DP World Tour. As I say, the job of the executive and the board is to serve the players, and the players are being served really well at the moment with some great events, record prize funds and a pathway onto the PGA TOUR.

Of those currently projected to be in next year’s crop of dual members, their games are good enough. They've all finished in the top 20 in the money list this year and it may even be top 15 that is needed after this week in order to secure your PGA TOUR card. So, it's a high standard. They'll have played very well on the DP World Tour to get that status. It just shows you that the pathways are there. You can go from without a card to getting a Challenge Tour card to getting a DP World Tour card to get a PGA Tour card in very quick succession. Professional golf is a meritocracy and that illustrates it.

What Matteo Manassero has done this year is a great human story. Everybody in the game who knows him is thrilled for the success that he's had this year and he's going from playing on the Challenge Tour to having a good card on the PGA TOUR in a matter of 18 months. That’s a huge step. What we've seen from the guys who have gone over to America is it's not so much the golf, we know they’re capable. The question is the culture change, and can they equip themselves to that culture change and the different environment that the PGA TOUR is.

Rory vs Schauffele / Scheffler

I think Rory has had a very good season. His stats have all been pretty good this year. I think he's a more rounded golfer than he's ever been before. But the problem he's got is that the bar has raised. The bar is a lot higher than it was when he was winning Major Championships ten years ago. Xander Schauffele and Scottie Scheffler are playing golf to a standard and level that we haven't seen since Tiger Woods. Consistently, their statistics show that. Certainly, Scottie Scheffler this year has gone down as one of the best recorded statistical seasons, winning seven times. Schauffele is not far behind him and is a better putter than him, but his statistics through the bag are phenomenal. The bar has never been higher for Rory to compete in. The environment has never been tougher. So, I think he's had a good season, but he knows himself that he's going to have to do something extraordinary to take down those two players, who have moved the needle quite a bit.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

DP World Tour Championship : Rory the story, then all the rest...TEE TIMES

 DP World Tour : Tour Championship Tee Times

The DP World Tour reaches its 44th and final event of the 2024 Race to Dubai schedule this week as the top 50 available players tee it up at Jumeirah Golf Estates on the Rolex Series.

What McIlroy needs to do to win sixth Race to Dubai

Unlike last season when Rory McIlroy arrived in Dubai for the season-ending showpiece assured of lifting the Harry Vardon Trophy, there is still work to be done in his quest for Race to Dubai glory. In his 12 starts this campaign, he has won once at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in January, finished runner-up four times and recorded three further top five finishes. The latest of those came at last week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship as he strengthened his position at the summit of the Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex.

Rory McIlroy is aiming to win his sixth Race to Dubai title, which would leave him two behind Colin Montgomerie's record of eight

With one event to go, there is just one player who can deny him becoming European Number One for a sixth time: Thriston Lawrence. The South African has five runner-up finishes and five more top tens but knows a victory is the minimum this week if he is to have a chance of surpassing McIlroy, who has a lead of 1,785.02 points. Even then, a first Rolex Series title for Lawrence wouldn’t be enough if McIlroy finishes solo 11th or better.

Career-changing dual membership with PGA TOUR up for grabs

In addition to the season-long champion, the DP World Tour Championship will also determine the top ten players on the Race to Dubai Rankings (not otherwise exempt) who will be eligible to claim dual membership and a PGA TOUR card next year. Lawrence leads that list, followed by Rasmus Højgaard, Paul Waring, Niklas Norgaard, Matteo Manassero, Jesper Svensson, Thorbjørn Olesen, Rikuya Hoshino, Sebastian Söderberg and Jordan Smith. 

Tom McKibbin is the man looking in from the outside, with Guido Migliozzi also around the bubble ahead of what could be a career-changing week for so many players. Statistically, everyone including Francesco Laporta – the last man in the field – can play their way into the top ten. 

Of the ten players who benefited from the formal pathway to compete on the PGA TOUR last season, Matthieu Pavon and Robert MacIntyre both won titles and reached the Tour Championship. They were two of six to retain their full playing privileges stateside, alongside Ryan Fox, Victor Perez, Sami Välimäki and Ryo Hisatsune. 

Inside the field

The fifth and final Rolex Series event of the season features the top 50 available players on the Race to Dubai Rankings, with 2023 Ryder Cup-winning teammates Ludvig Åberg and Jon Rahm missing through injury or otherwise. 

World Number Three McIlroy is the top ranked player and one of four Major Champions teeing it up alongside Adam Scott, Shane Lowry and Justin Rose. They are joined by Rolex Series winners Billy Horschel, Tyrrell Hatton, Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre, Min Woo Lee and its most recent member of the roll of honour in Waring. 

More than half of the field consists of DP World Tour winners this season, with 27 in total on show in Dubai. Of those, 11 are first-time winners, with France’s David Ravetto among those having earned his DP World Tour card through Qualifying School last year. 

Matteo Manassero, Jesper Svensson, Joe Dean and Angel Hidalgo have all been stories of the season and will hope to enjoy fitting finishes to their campaigns.

edit ** Canada's lone representative on the DP World Tour, Aaron Cockerill is in his 5th and best season, qualifying for the Tour Championship for the first time at #49.

From Teulon, just outside Winnipeg, Aaron has moved his family, Chelsea and daughter Addison to Dubai to avoid the brutal Canadian winters, cut out all that travel and take advantage of not just the weather, but practice facilities and all the other Western qualities of life on offer in the UAE.

Just qualifying has been a great bonus, and I now feel he has a free reign to let all his talent flow this week, with guaranteed prize money on tap. 

Rolex Series history over the Earth course

Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Earth course – part of the European Tour Destinations network of venues – will host the DP World Tour Championship for the 16th time this week, having first done so in 2009. Eight years later the event became part of the Rolex Series, and it has continued to deliver excitement and headline champions. 

A general view of the sixth hole at the Earth course

Nicolai Højgaard won the title last year but missed out on having the chance to defend his title as he finished 59th on the Rankings after the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. All four winners of this season’s Rolex Series events are in Dubai though, with past champion McIlroy hoping to win the title for the first time since 2012.

This is a course that, similarly to Yas Links, suits long drivers and great putters. The long hitters can easily reach all the par fives and they can also carry some bunkers to make the course a lot easier. The greens are relatively easy to hit so good putters can also separate themselves from the field. If you look at previous winners it’s mostly been great drivers (Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Nicolai Højgaard) or great putters (Matt Fitzpatrick, Danny Willett).

Rory McIlroy is one of the favourites, like any week of the year. He loves playing in the Middle East and he is the best player in the field. He can take full advantage of his driving around Jumeirah Golf Estates and he has a great record around here.

Tommy Fleetwood has been a serious contender with 4 top 5's in his last 5 starts over the Earth Course. Now he is based there full time so he will have some local knowledge. He struggled on the greens at the venue over the last three years but his tee to green performances have been second to none.

Tyrrell Hatton is in good form after a great win at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and a runner-up finish in Abu Dhabi. He was a close second in 2022 and he seems to like the course as he was able to gain shots in every area over the last three years. His great putting could really make a difference this week.

europeantour.com

Edoardo Molinari

Bryan Angus (edit)