Dubai: Henrik Stenson cruised to his second Race to Dubai title with a tied for ninth-place finish at the European Tour’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Earth Course on Sunday.
The 40-year-old Swede only needed to finish above his nearest rivals in the money-list at this weekend’s event to claim overall season’s honours for the second time since 2013. In the end, he achieved this comfortably, carding a final round of 65 to finish 12 under par for the tournament, five shots off event winner Matt Fitzpatrick.
Second in the money-list Danny Willett finished on one under, tied for 50th in the leaderboard, while third in money-list Alex Noren finished eight under, tied for 23rd.
Fourth in the money-list Rory McIlroy — the last man in the list still able to usurp Stenson — also finished level with the Swede on nine under, but it wasn’t enough.
“I’m very pleased to get my name on this trophy once again,” said Stenson, who recorded two wins — including his first major, The Open — as well seven top five and 11 top 10 finishes in 16 appearances this season.
“It’s been a great year, the best year of my career. I’ve always thought it was going to be hard to top 2013,” – when he won the Race to Dubai by winning the DP World Tour Championship – “… but I think I’ve done that this year.”
The Swede added that the Race to Dubai was essentially won in China last month when he finished tied for second to overtake a waning Willett, and from then on it was just a case of holding on, despite Noren winning last week in South Africa.
“Luckily for me I didn’t really win it this week here in Dubai or last week in South Africa; it was the second-place finish in China that put me top of the Race to Dubai, and I managed to hold the other guys off coming here to the end.
“It’s been more of a cruise and seeing what the other guys do. Even though Alex won last week, I still had a healthy lead and no one really threatened it too much this week.”
Surveying the names on the Harry Vardon Trophy, Stenson said: “We’ve got Ballesteros, Langer and Faldo, and then in the later years some more familiar names. It shows a lot of history. To win it once is very satisfying but to win it twice is even better.
“I’m very pleased because I’ve now got two DP World Tour Championship titles [from 2013, 2014] and two Race to Dubai titles, so I have set in my home in Sweden and a set in my home in America, so I can spread it out and make it look good in both places.”
