Rory McIlroy narrowly missed a $3 million windfall after stumbling at the final stage of the DP World Championship. The Northern Irish golfer was leading the pack as they entered the last day of play on the Earth Course, with his sights set on the hefty winner’s prize.
However, a string of missteps on the back nine at Jumeirah put him in a starkly different position as he neared the 18th hole. Going into the par-five hole at T5 alongside Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen with an overall score of 16-under par, McIlroy needed an eagle to force a playoff with Matt Fitzpatrick.
This was due to the fact that just moments before, the English golfer had sunk a birdie to pull ahead from a tie with Ludvig Aberg, Laurie Canter, and Tommy Fleetwood, putting him at 18-under and alone at the top of the leaderboard. Despite reaching the green in two, the gap between McIlroy’s ball and the hole demanded absolute precision and speed to land anywhere near the cup, let alone go in.
Nevertheless, McIlroy demonstrated to golf enthusiasts around the globe exactly why he is considered one of the best by securing the necessary eagle to enter a tie-breaker with Fitzpatrick. The playoff saw McIlroy and Fitzpatrick replay the 18th, with the 31-year-old teeing off first.
Although his tee shot found the rough on the left side, it was in a significantly better spot than McIlroy’s – as the 36-year-old saw his ball splash into the water hazard cutting through the center of the fairway. Fitzpatrick managed to clear the water himself, though his ball once more settled in the rough, presenting McIlroy with a prime opportunity to recover from a penalty drop 234 yards away.
However, the shot drifted right, finishing in a greenside bunker at the front of the green. Spectators gasped as Fitzpatrick then missed the putting surface with his third shot, finding the fringe directly in front of McIlroy’s ball, once more handing the Northern Ireland star a chance to fight his way back into contention.
McIlroy faced a similar position to his playoff-forcing eagle, perhaps slightly further away, needing solid execution to salvage par. Fitzpatrick’s fourth shot came to rest considerably closer to the cup, only intensifying the pressure on the putt – with McIlroy falling marginally short of what was needed.
Following that, Fitzpatrick sank his own par putt to claim the DP World Championship for the third time. Discussing what derailed him during Sunday’s round, a dejected McIlroy said: “Got off to the perfect start, three-under through five, four-under through seven.
“Felt like I’d sort of taken control of the golf tournament, was a couple ahead and then I made two bogeys on the way in on 12 and 16 and didn’t birdie 14 and 15, the birdie holes. Obviously knew I needed something to happen on the last. I actually hit a great shot on 17, came up a little short on a great putt then lipped out. But yeah, I knew what I needed to do. I hit a great five wood, lucky to see Rasmus’ putt before mine, saw his sort of hung out to the right a little bit before it started to turn so got a bit of a read from him.
“And yeah, look, a great way to finish. It was nice to be able to summon what I needed to to make the play-off. But unfortunately hitting it in the water there on 18 in the play-off just sort of put me behind the eight-ball, but happy for Matt. He’s had a great end to the season.
“Played great to get on the Ryder Cup team, and then he’s sort of kept it going since. So really happy for him as well.”
Despite narrowly missing out on the DP World Championship title, which still netted him a £912,000 prize for his runner-up finish, McIlroy can find comfort in securing his seventh Race to Dubai crown and the £1.5m bonus that accompanies the achievement. McIlroy entered the World Championship in prime position to claim the award, having accumulated 4,640.06 points across 10 tournaments, with Marco Penge and Tyrrell Hatton requiring multiple scenarios to fall their way to overtake him.
Despite adding an additional 1,335 points to his seasonal tally, McIlroy was able to secure a seventh Race to Dubai title, surpassing the record he previously held with the late Seve Ballesteros. He now trails Colin Montgomerie, who holds a record eight wins.
