McIlroy Must Break Abu Dhabi Drought to Lead Race To Dubai
To secure a record-equalling eighth Race To Dubai title, Rory McIlroy may need to achieve something he has never accomplished before: winning the tournament in Abu Dhabi.
While a general tournament loss is not significant, McIlroy’s inability to lift the Abu Dhabi Championship trophy is surprising given his excellent form in this event and across the Middle East.
McIlroy can equal Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight Race To Dubai titles if he tops the rankings this year, which would also mark his fifth consecutive victory in the standings.
He faces stiff competition from Patrick Reed and the surprise leader, Eugenio Chacarra, heading into the DP World Tour Play-Offs.
With points increasing significantly in the final two tournaments, McIlroy should be the favorite to win, given his outstanding record in the Middle East.
Although he is a prolific seven-time winner in Dubai, nearby Abu Dhabi remains a major anomaly, as McIlroy has yet to win a trophy despite reaching the podium almost every time he has played there.
McIlroy has competed 14 times in Abu Dhabi and remarkably has finished in the top three 10 times, recording four runner-up finishes and six third-place results.
The Northern Irishman has missed the cut only once, recorded a lowest finish of T12 when reaching the weekend, and finished T11 and T5 in his first two appearances.
“It’s amazing being in contention that often but not getting over the line,” said McIlroy, who has an Abu Dhabi trophy on his bucket list and came close again last year when he shot 62 on Sunday but missed joining Aaron Rai’s playoff win over Tommy Fleetwood by just one stroke.
“I thought maybe last year was the year, and made a good push on Sunday and I came up one short with the playoff between Aaron and Tommy but I think I really liked Abu Dhabi Golf Club when we played there.”
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Third-placed McIlroy trails Chacarra by just under 1,000 points ahead of Abu Dhabi, and with 1,500 points available for the champion at Yas Links, he will likely need to finally break his winless streak here to enter Dubai leading the Race To Dubai.
This has been the pattern for the last four years when McIlroy claimed the European No.1 spot, but with even more points available in Dubai, he is content to be in contention for that season-ending title next week.
“I think I would obviously love to win and be in that position going into next week,” McIlroy admitted. “But I think what gives me comfort is the amount of points that are on offer this week and next week.
“So even if I don’t win but I still have a strong finish, I’ll still feel like I have a very realistic chance going into next week as well in Dubai. So I guess it’s a nice thing that a win would certainly be welcome but not totally necessary. But obviously a win would make life a lot easier.”
Rory McIlroy’s Abu Dhabi record
|
Result |
Tournament |
|---|---|
|
T3 |
2025 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship |
|
T3 |
2024 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship |
|
T12 |
2022 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship |
|
3rd |
2021 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship |
|
T3 |
2018 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship |
|
T3 |
2016 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship |
|
2nd |
2015 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship |
|
T2 |
2014 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship |
|
Missed Cut |
2013 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship |
|
2nd |
2012 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship |
|
2nd |
2011 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship |
|
3rd |
2010 Abu Dhabi Golf Championship |
|
T5 |
2009 Abu Dhabi Golf Championship |
|
T11 |
2008 Abu Dhabi Golf Championship |
