Following Sergio Garcia’s decision not to play in the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai this week, Stephen Gallacher, 61st in the Race to Dubai standings, will take his place, joining fellow Scots Marc Warren and Richie Ramsay in the field.
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European Tour reigning champion Rory McIlroy has his eyes firmly set on a third continental title with the Northern Irishman holding a slender lead over Danny Willett of England on the summit of the season-lengthy rating coming into this climactic week. McIlroy was given special dispensation to complete his season here, and play for the bonus pool of cash, despite not competing in the requisite 13 tournaments on the European Tour.
But Rose is confident his recent victory in Hong Kong and his own course form in Dubai – he has finished second, 10th and second in the last three years – gives him the chance to claim a second money list title. “I really think this golf course plays into the long-hitters’ hands”.
While Danny Willett has been in the press for negative reasons over the last few days, he’s a sensational golfer and should have the mentality needed to put all of the external comments to the back of his mind.
Among different favourites, Henrik Stenson will launch his bid of the hat-trick of titles, following his success on 2013 and 2014, within the firm of final week’s runner-up Patrick Reed. “But I’ve made good progression this year and I’m in a fantastic position to go out there and do something pretty wonderful”.
However, will probably be extremely robust as prime European golfers may even be keen to depart a mark on the forty eighth event on the tour. ‘It told me that when I play my best I can do anything.
“At the beginning of the season, maybe not, but this is the 52nd week of the season and I think having the week off might have benefited him”.
“I fancy my chances”, said Rose on Wednesday. “I’m close enough that if I win, I feel like I win the whole thing”.
He said: “I feel like every tournament I am getting a little better and hope to continue that trend into Dubai”.
This will be another stern examination he must sit along the way but having classed his last outing in China as “stale” and endured a poor week on the greens, I wonder whether he has just hit the wall and attempting to chase down and then pass Rory on the Race To Dubai may be a bridge too far. It’s taken record-breaking performances to prevent me from winning.
We don’t need to say any more, just watch the clip below!
Others who can still win the Race to Dubai missed a golden opportunity to go top in McIlroy’s absence. “If I’m the champion at the end of the week it means that I win the Race to Dubai and that’s all I’m really thinking about”.
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“If rules were allowed to be broken all the time, then there’s no point in setting them in the first place, but in that case it’s a very hard one to get correct and it was the first decision Keith had to make in becoming the chief executive of the Tour”, he said.
