Rory McIlroy equalled Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight DP World Tour Order of Merit titles after claiming the Race to Dubai for a fifth successive season; McIlroy finished runner-up to Tyrrell Hatton at the DP World Tour Championship Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player An emotional Rory McIlroy fought back tears as he dedicated a record-equalling eighth Race to Dubai title to his father, Gerry, after a runner-up finish at the DP World Tour Championship. The Northern Irishman pipped Eugenio Chacarra to the Harry Vardon Trophy after an eventful final round at Jumeirah Golf Estates, where both players traded top spot in the projected Race to Dubai rankings on multiple occasions before McIlroy claimed the title. McIlroy secured solo second on 10 under, five strokes behind Ryder Cup team-mate Tyrrell Hatton, ensuring he would top the DP World Tour rankings for a fifth successive season and match Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight Order of Merit titles. The Masters champion revealed that his father has been recovering in hospital following a double-lung transplant in September, with McIlroy in tears as he discussed how much his dad was on his mind during his latest achievement.
“Yeah, a lot,” McIlroy admitted. “He has been in the hospital for the last two months. He underwent a huge operation at the end of September and he is recovering well, thankfully. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player “When I left to come here to the Middle East, I went up to Cleveland to see him before I went and he said to me, ‘Go win the Race to Dubai’.
This one is for him.” He later explained his press conference: “It has been a stressful time for our family. I’ve been up in Cleveland a lot, because that’s where he is. I didn’t know if I was going to go to India, because I spent nine days in the ICU with him while he was recovering. “If things were not looking as good as they were, I probably wouldn’t have felt comfortable travelling or being too far away.
He’s got an amazing team up there, and the doctors and nurses are absolutely incredible. So I felt comfortable going to India and travelling and knowing that I could obviously get back to him if I needed to. “That [winning for him] was in my head for the last two weeks and I really wanted to do it for him. I know he’s in hospital in his hospital bed, and he would have been watching this morning.
It was nice to be able to get it done for him.” Race to Dubai success caps another strong campaign for McIlroy, who defended his Masters title in April to match Sir Nick Faldo’s major tally, with the 37-year-old also proud to match Montgomerie’s Order of Merit record. “Winning eight Order of Merits was never really in my list of goals when I was growing up,” the Northern Irishman said in an interview with the DP World Tour. “I remember Monty being obviously a stalwart of the European Tour, going to watch him at the World Match Play at Wentworth over the years and remember playing with him for the first time, so to pull up alongside him and to win any of these things, it means the world to me. “I am a very proud European, a proud European player.
I am proud to be a part of the DP World Tour, and I am very proud of myself right now.” McIlroy threatened a late run for a fourth DP World Tour Championship title when he moved within a shot of the lead during the final day, having finished his front nine with three birdies in four holes, before eventually carding a bogey-free 67. The birdie at the par-four 16th was enough to edge him top of the rankings ahead of Chacarra, who ended tied-third on eight under, with McIlroy briefly 0.1 points behind the Spaniard in the standings during the final day. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player “It is probably a good thing but I wasn’t aware of how much it was sort of going back and forth until the 16th,” McIlroy added. “When I was walking to the green, I saw that he was projected No 1.
“Then when I made my birdie and I’m walking off the green, I saw I was projected No 1. I was a little nervous going to the last couple of holes. I guess I did what I needed to do and I shot a good score today. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player “A lot of other things went my way today, as well.
No one made a run. Eugenio [Chacarra] played pretty good, but none of the chasing pack did anything. There were a lot of different scenarios, but thankfully everything fell my way today.” Chacarra, who ends the season in second spot and has earned one of the 10 PGA Tour memberships available via the Race to Dubai rankings, said: “It was a good fight. I just came out short – that’s the beauty of golf.
He [McIlroy] has played here 14, 15 times, it was going to be tough, and he had a better day than I did. “I knew it was going to be a long day and I tried my best. That’s all I can ask for myself to do and that’s what we did. I would say proud of the fight and proud to have a chance till the end.” The new DP World Tour season begins at the BMW Australian PGA Championship from November 26-29, held at The Lakes GC in Sydney.
McIlroy will next be in action at the Capital.com Australian Open from December 3-6 in Melbourne, with both events live on Sky Sports. Get the latest Sky Sports deals or stream golf and more sport with no contract.
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