Tag: 2023 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship

Victor Perez takes step towards Ryder Cup with DP World Tour win thanks to ‘greatest shot’ he’s ever hit

Perez earned his third DP World Tour title in dramatic fashion on Sunday.

Victor Perez claimed his third DP World Tour win thanks to “probably the greatest shot I’ve ever hit” on the 17th hole during Sunday’s final round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

The Frenchman began the final round a shot off the pace at Yas Links Abu Dhabi but joined the mix early thanks to a consecutive birdies on both Nos. 1 and 2 as well as Nos. 6 and 7 to take a two-shot advantage. Min Woo Lee and Sebastian Soderberg kept the pressure on, and after a three-putt bogey on No. 14, Perez reclaimed his lead with a birdie on the 15th.

The shot of the day, however, came at the par-3 17th, where Perez holed out for what would be a crucial late birdie from the bunker to take a two-shot lead to the 18th.

Perez made a late bogey on the 18th to sign for a 6-under 66 and earn a one-shot win at 18 under over Lee (68) and Soderberg (66). Old enough to play on the Champions tour, Padraig Harrington finished fourth at 16 under, with Francesco Molinari and Alex Noren T-5 at 14 under. Sami Valimaki shot a course record 10-under 62 to finish inside the top 10.

The win puts Perez in prime position to compete for a spot on the European Ryder Cup team when the biennial bout heads for Italy in the fall. He’s currently second on the European Points list.

“It’s a great year ahead,” said Perez, who also became the first French winner of a Rolex Series event. “There’s a lot of big things coming up. I’ve had a really good off-season, I’ve worked really hard, and it’s just great.”

The DP World Tour will hold its third straight event in the Middle East next week with the 2023 Hero Dubai Desert Classic, Jan. 26-29.

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‘It would be incredible’: In search of making European Ryder Cup team, Francesco Molinari tied for lead at Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship

Francesco Molinari wants to be a member of the European Ryder Cup team this fall.

There’s no sugar-coating it: Francesco Molinari wants to be a member of the European Ryder Cup team this fall.

For the Italian, to represent the European squad on home soil would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and it would mean Molinari had found some form from 5 years ago when he won his only major championship at Carnoustie.

That’s why his start at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links in the United Arab Emirates is a confidence boost, though Molinari knows there’s plenty of golf left to be played. He’s tied for the lead with fellow countryman Guido Migliozzi at 10 under after the second round, searching for his first win in four years and a big boost to make it back on the Ryder Cup squad.

“I don’t want to get ahead of myself,” Molinari said. “It’s a couple of good rounds but I know, I’m aware of where I’m coming from. So like I said yesterday, the game feels different. I think it looks different, too. But yeah, it’s just two rounds, so a long way to go.”

The Ryder Cup is scheduled for Sept. 29-Oct. 1 at Marco Simone in Rome.

Molinari’s game dipped following a three-win stretch in 2018-19. At one point, he was ranked as high as fifth in the Official World Golf Ranking. Now, he’s at 166. He didn’t make the European Ryder Cup team in 2021 after playing in three previous editions of the competition.

After consecutive 5-under 67s to begin in Abu Dhabi, he’s in position to get a big boost in making the team. His brother, Edoardo, will be an assistant captain for the Europeans, too.

“I think obviously you don’t need my answer; it would be incredible (to be on the team),” Molinari said. “Yeah, there’s many months to go. It’s obviously nice to start the season this way. I never needed a pick for my three Ryder Cups, so it would be nice not to need a pick again this year.”

Migliozzi shot 3-under 69 on Friday to follow up his stellar opening round of 7-under 65. The pair lead Jason Scrivener by a shot.

Luke Donald, the 2023 European Ryder Cup captain who led after a first-round 64, shot 3 over and is T-22.

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Luke Donald, playing captain? He’s not ready to go there, but he leads the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship after day one

“We’re a long way from that,” Donald said when asked to be playing captain at 2023 Ryder Cup.

Is it too late for Luke Donald to declare himself a playing captain for the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome?

If he continues to play the way he did Thursday at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, that might be a decision he has to make later on this year.

“Playing here the last couple days I felt like there was some low scores out here as long as the wind didn’t blow too hard. It kinda suits my eye,” Donald said after his round at Yas Links.

Guess he was right.

Donald started strong with a birdie at the 10th, his first of the day. He’d go on to make three more birdies on his front side to turn in 4-under 32. The European Ryder Cup captain traded a birdie and a bogey on Nos. 2 and 3 (his 11th and 12th), before going on a run. Donald put circles on the card from Nos. 6-9 to come home in 32 for an 8-under 64 day one.

“I putted very nicely today, other than one three putt on the third hole for my only bogey. Made a couple long ones, but just was very tidy,” Donald said. “Maybe a little inspired by watching some good golf from last week (Hero Cup).

He was later asked about making his own Ryder Cup team.

“1975 was the last time that happened. We’re a long way from that.”

Guido Migliozzi and Jason Scrivener are one shot behind Donald at 7 under while Seamus Power is at 6 under. Shane Lowry is at 5 under with the Molinari brothers and Tommy Fleetwood is one back of them at 4 under.

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