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Rory McIlroy will keep the calculator in his bag, ignore his Race To Dubai rivals and aim for the European Number One crown the only way he knows how – by winning this week’s season-ending Dubai World Championship presented by: DP World at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
The young Holywood star can complete a remarkable start to his professional career and win the inaugural Race To Dubai simply by finishing ahead of the three nearest rivals to him in the rankings.
England's Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer of Germany both know that, like McIlroy, a victory on the Greg Norman-designed Earth Course in Dubai will guarantee them the European Tour's new incarnation of the Order of Merit. Another Englishman, Ross Fisher, must win and hope neither McIlroy nor Westwood finishes immediately behind him in second place.
Yet 20-year-old McIlroy is in the driving seat having nudged ahead of Westwood in their see-saw battle atop the Race to Dubai Rankings after a runner-up finish at last week’s UBS Hong Kong Open.
Check back on Thursday for a preview of the Ireland's clash with the World Champions and Tri-Nations holders South Africa at Croke Park on Saturday, November 28. |
Westwood had to settle for a tie for 54th place and not only slipped from four to five in the Official Golf World Ranikings but €128,173 behind McIlroy, whose second place pushed him to a career-high 13th place in the world just two years after turning professional.
McIlroy also celebrated his maiden pro victory in the emirate at the Dubai Desert Classic on February 1 and he will be aiming for a repeat this week over the untested fairways and greens of the Earth Course.
“I will still be trying to win the Dubai World Championship,” McIlroy said. “I won’t be trying to protect a lead or finish ahead of this guy or that guy.
“I want to win. If I win it will take care of everything.
“I am number one at the moment but there are four rounds of golf left. If I can play as well this week in Dubai as I have done of late then I will give myself a great chance to end number one. It is where I wanted to be going into the final tournament.”
“That’s what I am there to do. I was 11 under for the two rounds at the weekend (in Hong Kong) so I have a good momentum going into the final week.”
McIlroy will take his place among the 58 highest ranked golfers in the Race To Dubai rankings alongside fellow Irishmen Padraig Harrington, Graeme McDowell, Peter Lawrie, Gareth Maybin and Damien McGrane.
Players will go off in pairs designated according to their places in the standings, meaning McIlroy will play alongside Westwood in the final group, the entire field playing the Earth Course for the first time only this week as Norman's 7675-yard, par-72 parkland design makes a dramatic entrance on the Dubai golfing landscape.
Most eyecatching on an unusually undulating course for the region will be the closing quartet of holes, measuring 1703 yards and dubbed by Norman as the “Golden Mile”, including a longer version of the famous par-three Island Hole at TPC Sawgrass in Florida, both of which are 17th holes.
Westwood, who topped the Order of Merit nine years ago, is confident McIlroy's lead is far from insurmountable.
“It's by no means over,” the Englishman said. “I mean, back in 2000 I think I was more than 128,000 behind going into the last event. So, I've done it before, and I can do it again.”
