Dubai: A one-month countdown to the European Tour’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship began on Monday with a ceremonial tee-shot from Emirates Golf Federation chairman Shaikh Fahim Bin Sultan Al Qasimi at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
The top 60 players on the European Tour’s Race to Dubai rankings will gather at the Earth Course for the US$8 million (Dh29.3 million) season finale from November 16-19.
To mark the countdown, Shaikh Fahim fired a drive of 195 yards, in front of dignitaries and media.
Nick Tarratt, director of the European Tour’s Dubai office, said: “We can’t wait for the DP World Tour Championship to return to Jumeirah Golf Estates in four weeks’ time to showcase the top players on the European Tour. The Race to Dubai has 47 events in 27 destinations and they visit here for the culmination of a great series around the world.
“The Earth course is currently being overseeded so things are taking shape and this year we have a new Hero Challenge stunt at Atlantis, The Palm for our guests to get excited about. There will be plenty of surprises for sport fans to experience and see when the season-ending finale takes place in one month’s time.”
Tyrrell Hatton’s Italian Open victory on Sunday earned him 990,398 points to move him from 11th to fifth in the Race to Dubai, while Englishman Tommy Fleetwood still leads the season rankings with 3,974,247 points, followed by Sergio Garcia on 2,851,251 points and Jon Rahm on 2,840,693 points.
Abdulla Bin Damithan, commercial department director at DP World said: “A global tournament such as the DP World Tour Championship shows how our business and Dubai can work hand in hand to project both our brand and the emirate as a leading business, tourism and financial centre.
“Dubai is a cosmopolitan city and it is recognised all around the world, so this fantastic event definitely puts the emirate on the world stage. We want Dubai to be a destination for all kinds of sports and activities like golf as well as a key centre for trade. What is good for Dubai is good for DP World.”
Yousuf Kazim, chief executive officer of Jumeirah Golf Estates, said: “This is the ninth year that we are hosting the DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, this is a very important spectacle for the UAE and Dubai especially. Last year we attracted 65,000 spectators and we broadcasted to over 500 million people across the world.
“This year we are trying to upgrade all our facilities so they enjoy the experience even more from the moment they arrive at the course and they enjoy all the facilities we provide such as the village, kids zone and outlets. Working together with the European Tour, we always want to make sure we are meeting and aiming to go above and beyond our customers’ expectations at this fabulous tournament.”
