For the fifth time in his career and second year in a row, Rory McIlroy claimed the DP World Tour’s season-long Race to Dubai title. However, he wasn’t victorious this week as that honor went to his Ryder Cup teammate, Nicolai Hojgaard.
Hojgaard, who finished second at last week’s Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa, closed with an 8-under 64 at Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Earth Course that included a stretch of five straight birdies on the back nine – Nos. 13-17 – to beat Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Wallace and Viktor Hovland by two shots. This was the 22-year-old’s third DP World Tour title and first Rolex Series win.
“It means a lot. It’s the sweetest one,” he said. “It’s so much hard work been put in the last couple years, and this year has been a really good year if I look back on it, I feel like the only thing I need, was missing, was a win, and to get it this week, this field, is unbelievable.
“I mean, I can’t believe it’s just happened.”
McIlroy, who tied for 22nd at 10 under, sounded satisfied after winning yet another season-long title.
“It’s great. I think it shows my consistency year-to-year. I think over the last ten years, I think I’ve won eight season-long titles between America and between here, so it just shows my level of consistency,” he said. “I said to Harry on the last green, there’s a few guys that are able to beat me sort of one week or the next week but I don’t think there’s a lot of people that can beat me throughout the entire season.”
“We’re playing for record prize funds this year, we played for record prize funds last year.”
At the BMW International in early July 2022, Sergio Garcia reportedly went on an epic locker-room rant where he said, among other things, that the DP World Tour was in a world of hurt – only he used some more choice four-letter words – and that his fellow competitors should have taken the money from LIV Golf when they had a chance.
More than a year later, the DP World Tour is wrapping up a season in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates in which it played for record purses and strengthened its strategic alliance with the PGA Tour and in June agreed to a framework agreement with the Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Much remains to see how things will play out but longtime DP World Tour player, board member, 2014 European Ryder Cup captain and Golf Channel/Sky TV commentator is tired of hearing critics trash the deal.
“When you’re the little guy against an absolute giant that the PGA Tour is the odds are stacked against you,” McGinley said. “When a new titan comes on the pitch in terms of money like the Saudis and you’ve got one on each side and you’re the little guy in the middle you’re in a very precarious position.”
Europe players lift their captain Paul McGinley as he holds the trophy after winning the 2014 Ryder Cup.
The first decision the DP Tour faced goes back to the days of the PGL and the original alliance between the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, which was announced nearly two years ago on Nov. 27, 2021, and for intents and purposes thwarted Andy Gardiner and his brainchild of the upstart PGL.
“Jay came in heavy,” McGinley told author Alan Shipnuck in his new book Liv and Let Die. “He showed us the color of his eyes.”
An unnamed PGA investor declared: “Monahan basically threatened to take all of their sponsors and said he would pump money into the purses of Tour events played opposite the Euro Tour’s flagship events so all the top Europeans stayed in the States. He might as well have parked tanks outside of Keithy Pelley’s office.”
According to Shipnuck, the European Tour had two top executives make their cases for the better deal, with Guy Kinnings advocating for the alliance with the PGA Tour and Rufus Hack pushing for the PGL merger. Shipnuck writes: “Monahan’s offer would give the European Tour a needed cash infusion without it having to sell its soul, while allowing the PGA Tour to thwart a formidable competitor for a reasonable price, part of the deal was that the European Tour would be barred from partnering with or supporting any other tour.”
The DP World Tour and PGA Tour extending its relationship, especially in terms of international events, was a critical decision in reshaping the trajectory of the tour.
“We had a big question to make: if we do nothing we’re going to slowly die, or we align ourselves with one of the titans,” McGinley mused. “Any venture capitalist will tell you it’s not just about money, particularly when you’re managing a members’ organization like we are. We had to balance up not only the financials but also the security and future of the European Tour. The Saudis were new on the pitch and it was difficult to assess how committed they were going to be long term and could they just disappear as quickly as they arrived on the scene. The chances of that were realistically strong.
“The idea of us aligning with the Saudis would’ve been a massive risk to our members because A, we would’ve pissed off the PGA Tour massively. They would’ve never done any business with us again; in fact, they would’ve gone out of their way to bury us. And B, if after a couple of years, the Saudis decided we’re losing money on golf, we’re out, we would’ve been at the mercy of those people and we would’ve been in a vulnerable position. I think we made a savvy decision and the path of least resistance and least risk to align with the PGA Tour. That was a very strong deal for us.
“The odds were heavily in our favor and we hitched our wagon and we did so knowing that the days of us going toe to toe with the PGA Tour are gone.”
To hear McGinley tell it, the PGA Tour’s business model has accelerated in the last five years, particularly because of TV rights. As a result, he’s convinced the European circuit never would compete with the PGA Tour again as it once did in its heyday.
Paul McGinley guides Europe to a Ryder Cup victory in 2014.
“These misty-eyed people who think, oh, the days of Seve and Langer, that’s bullshit, because the commercial model has exploded in the U.S., and hasn’t and it won’t in Europe,” McGinley said. “We had to deal with the dynamics that were in play and we’re at mercy of people being critical of it but they’re not being critical based on reality.”
Most of the critics ignore the fact that the board of the European Tour is incredibly strong.
Martin Gilbert, founder of Aberdeen Asset Management, one of the biggest funds in the world, is on the policy board and his world is assessing risk.
“Do you think when it came down to the nitty gritty that David Howell, Thomas Bjorn and myself were front and center in all of this? Absolutely not. We had experts in there on the board doing the deal,” he said. “We were well advised from the business point of view. It was a well-considered and thought-through deal that we did with the PGA Tour.”
McGinley is convinced the DP World Tour is in a stronger position and while the circuit’s fortunes still may be evolving, he argues that the European Tour weighed its options and found the safety of the PGA Tour to be a winning combination.
“The good news is by aligning with America we did a good financial deal and all our players committed to playing four events outside of the majors and the world events and continue to come back and play European Tour events,” McGinley said. “We’re playing for record prize funds this year, we played for record prize funds last year, and that’s guaranteed for the next 13 years. Tell me how that’s a bad deal for the European Tour. And we’ve minimized our risk. The PGA Tour isn’t going away in the next three years but potentially the Saudis could. We couldn’t take that risk. That would not have been proper due diligence for us as a members’ organization that represents 500 people.”
It was a special round for Matt Wallace on Saturday at the DP World Tour Championship.
The 32-year-old from England shot 12-under 60 in the third round at the DP World Tour Championship, moving into the lead by one shot with 18 holes to play at Jumeirah Golf Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Wallace, who has four DP World Tour wins in his career, leads Viktor Hovland, the 2023 FedEx Cup champion, and Tommy Fleetwood by one shot.
Wallace’s round was special, marked by nine straight birdies on the back nine to shoot 27 and card a 60, the lowest round on the DP World Tour this season.
Matt Wallace of England walks to the 18th green during Day Three of the DP World Tour Championship on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates on November 18, 2023 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
“What a day, an amazing day,” Wallace said. “Just tried my hardest to get myself back into the tournament. I’m really happy that I’ve been able to do that. Played great.
“Again at the end, I didn’t even think there was a 59. Honestly I think it helped me a little bit. I just played nicely coming down the stretch, just keep getting one more if I could and I managed to do that.”
Wallace’s eagle chip on the 18th hole came up just short of the hole, however, a closing birdie to cap the stellar back nine was a feather in the cap of the best round of Wallace’s life. With a win Sunday, he would win his first Rolex Series title, even though Rory McIlroy has captured the Race to Dubai, the DP World Tour’s season-long points race, for the fifth time.
Hovland and Fleetwood matched 66s on Saturday, continuing their trend from the first two days after matching 69s and 66s the first two days.
Even the FedEx Cup champion was impressed with Wallace’s day.
“That’s ridiculous,” Hovland said. “You know, it played easier today, not a lot of wind. Greens were soft. But the greens are very grainy. It’s hard to make putts. On some of the pin locations, like 17, for example, I don’t know, that’s a tough one to get close to. So there is a lot of good pins. And yeah, I mean, 60 out here, that’s ridiculous.”
Tendulkar is huge on social media, with more than 39 million followers on X and another 44 million on Instagram.
It’s been a stretch for sports crossovers.
Jon Rahm recently threw out the first pitch at the World Series. Four PGA Tour stars teed it up with four F1 drivers in Las Vegas in the first-ever live golf event on Netflix. Ahead of the PGA Tour’s RSM Classic this week, some of those wacky Savannah Bananas participated in the pro-am as well as the 11th annual RSM Wiffle Ball Classic with some of the golfer’s wives.
Prior to his first round at the DP World Tour Championship, Rory McIlroy chopped it up with the most famous athlete in the world you’ve maybe never heard of.
OK, perhaps that’s a stretch but most Americans don’t follow the sport of cricket so maybe they don’t recognize the name Sachin Tendulkar, even though he’s a true legend in his own right. Considered the most prolific batsmen in his sport, Tendulkar is huge on social media, with more than 39 million followers on X and another 44 million on Instagram.
McIlroy gave Tendulkar a signed DP World Tour flag and got a wicket and India shirt signed by Tendulkar in return. They also posed for some photos.
Rory McIlroy has already clinched the season-long Race to Dubai title, but there’s still hardware on the line this week at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
European Ryder Cupper Nicolai Hojgaard is tied for the lead at 5 under alongside Julien Guerrier and Matthieu Pavon. Guerrier and Pavon were bogey free on Thursday, while Hojgaard was 1 over through six holes before closing his round with six birdies over the final 12 holes.
“I played really well today,” Hojgaard said. “Drove it well from hole No. 1 to 18, even though it was a little bit of a circus on 18, felt really solid. Got on a run. You know there’s a few chances out there, so it’s just about keep hitting good shots and stay present, and I feel I did a good job today.”
Jens Dantorp, Antoine Rozner and Adrian Meronk are tied for fourth at 4 under while a group including Tommy Fleetwood, Tom Kim, Viktor Hovland and Robert MacIntyre sit 3 under, T-7.
As Golfweek reported on Monday, several new drivers were added to the USGA’s List of Conforming Driver Heads, including the yet-to-be-released TaylorMade Qi10 LS. While TaylorMade has not released any official information about the Qi10 LS, based on the USGA notes and images, we now see it has a sliding weight in the sole, a carbon fiber face and a sole geometry that is similar to the SIM, SIM 2, Stealth and Stealth 2 drivers.
On Tuesday, as Rory McIlroy was preparing for this week’s DP Tour World Championship in the United Arab Emirates, he said that while he wanted to win the tournament, it might serve as a great place to test the Qi10 LS in competition and that he was considering using it.
On Thursday, as he showed up on the first tee of the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates, the Qi10 LS was under his familiar dog head cover. That gave on-site photographers a chance to take close-up photos of the driver and for us to try to get more details on it.
Here are some close-up looks of the TaylorMade Qi10 LS.
Next week the European-based tour heads to Dubai for its season finale DP World Tour Championship.
Max Homa was a winner on Sunday, but it wasn’t on the PGA Tour.
The 32-year-old is sitting pretty in Sun City, South Africa, after picking up his first international win at the Nedbank Golf Challenge, the penultimate event of the DP World Tour season.
Playing on an invitation, Homa fired a 6-under 66 at Gary Player Country Club to finish at 19 under for the tournament, four shots ahead of runner-up Nicolai Hojgaard (68). This weekend was Homa’s first appearance since his 3½-point performance in his Ryder Cup Debut last month in Italy.
“It’s kind of what you dream of, you want to be in the fight and it was just fun to kind of close it out at the end,” Homa said. “It was one of those weeks the ball wanted to go in when it needed to go in.”
Homa is a six-time winner on the PGA Tour and last claimed victory at the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open. In 25 events last season, the Cal product earned two wins, one runner-up and 18 top-25 finishes. He finished ninth in the FedEx Cup standings and earned $10,761,517 in official prize money.
Thorbjorn Olesen (69) finished third at 14 under, with Justin Thomas (66) in fourth at 12 under. Dan Bradbury (71) rounded out the top five at 11 under. Two-time defending champion Tommy Fleetwood (72) finished T-12 at 7 under.
Next week the European-based tour heads to Dubai for its season finale DP World Tour Championship.
Max Homa has a one-shot lead in South Africa with 18 holes to play.
Max Homa has a chance to do something Sunday he has never done before.
The 32-year-old American can win his first event on the DP World Tour, as he holds the 54-hole lead at the 2023 Nedbank Golf Challenge at Gary Player Country Club in Sun City, South Africa. Homa shot 3-under 69 on Saturday and holds a one-shot lead heading into Sunday’s final round.
Homa played the front nine in even-par, but he started the back nine with an eagle on the par-5 10th. He added another birdie on the par-5 14th to card a 33 on the back.
Ranked eighth in the world, Homa has six wins on the PGA Tour but hasn’t won on the DP World Tour. That can change Sunday, but there’s an experienced pack chasing him.
Matthieu Pavon, who was tied with Homa after 36 holes, sits solo second at 12 under after a 2-under performance. Nicolai Hojgaard and Thorbjorn Oleson are tied for third at 11 under.
Justin Thomas, who went on a safari adventure with Homa last week, is T-10 at 6 under. He shot even-par in the third round.
“I woke up today and felt like a golfer again, so that was nice.”
Max Homa is taking a break from the PGA Tour but not golf.
Halfway around the world, Homa is tied for the lead at the halfway mark at the Nedbank Golf Challenge on the DP World Tour.
Homa must like what he’s seeing at the Gary Player Country Club in Sun City, South Africa, as he’s yet to bogey a hole. He opened with a 66 and shot a second-round 68 to get to 10 under, where he shares the lead with Matthieu Pavon of France.
Homa has six wins on the PGA Tour but is seeking his first international victory.
“I’m very pleased, a little surprised, pleasantly surprised. It’s been nice, the body’s feeling better as the week’s gone on,” Homa said. “I woke up today and felt like a golfer again, so that was nice. It’s a real dream. If you fly 20-odd hours over here, you may as well play some good golf. So it’s nice that I’m doing that.”
Daniel Bradbury is solo third at 9 under. Tied for fourth at 8 under are Nicolai Hojgaard and Thorbjorn Olesen. Justin Thomas is in a group of six golfers tied for eighth at 6 under.
Tommy Fleetwood, the tournament’s two-time defending champ, is four shots back heading into the weekend.
Francesco Molinari (3 under), Justin Rose (even) and Robert MacIntyre (4 over) are also in the 66-man field.
Ahead of the tournament, Homa and JT went on a safari with their wives.
During the first-round broadcast of the DP World Tour’s Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa, that country’s own Gary Player stopped by to take in the action and joined the broadcast.
The three-time Masters champion said he loved that Augusta National extended a membership offer to arguably the greatest women’s player of all time, Annika Sorenstam (a story first reported by Golfweek‘s Adam Schupak).
“To see Annika Sorenstam made a member of Augusta, they never allowed women, and now to see a woman be a member, I think it’s fantastic,” Player said. “She’s the best lady golfer in the world, or was, wonderful to see, isn’t it?”
Sorenstam isn’t the first woman to earn a green jacket, as she joined Condoleezza Rice, Darla Moore and others.
However, when the Augusta National Women’s Amateur was mentioned as another great thing Augusta National does for the women’s game, Player quickly retorted, “I don’t agree with you on that.”
