Billy Horschel believes the DP World Tour has the world’s second-strongest talent pool, as the American prepares to compete in the season-ending DP World Tour Championship.
The 37-year-old arrives at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai sitting fourth in the Race to Dubai standings, thanks to a series of impressive performances this season. These include an eighth-place finish at the U.S. Open, a runner-up spot at The Open and his second career victory at the BMW PGA Championship.
His triumph at Wentworth inspired him to book a ticket to Dubai, determined to make his mark in the final event of the Race to Dubai.
“I'm excited to be here,” said Horschel in his pre-tournament press conference.
“Listen, it's their Tour Championship. It's their last event of the year. It means a lot to everyone who gets here. It's very similar to our TOUR Championship on the PGA TOUR.
“So, you know, when I won Wentworth this, wasn't on my schedule originally and then when I won, I felt like I needed to make sure I show up and attend a special event, and that's what I'm doing. I'm looking forward to hopefully a great week.
“I haven't done a lot of practise over the last month. Greens are a little rusty, but we'll just see what happens.”
Horschel primarily competes on the PGA Tour in the United States, but he’s also a strong advocate for the DP World Tour.
Unlike many of his peers who chose not to utilise a new exemption this season - which would have allowed them to participate in the DP World Tour’s "Back 9" events -Horschel has embraced opportunities to play internationally.
Given his commitment, he was questioned about his choice of words when he referred to the DP World Tour Championship as “their” Tour Championship rather than “our” Tour Championship, despite having competed in several DP World Tour events in recent years.
“Yeah, I do use the words "we" and "theirs," and sometimes I put myself in that world of the member of the DP World Tour,” he said.
“But listen, I support this tour. I love this tour. I think the world of this tour. But at the same time, I don't support this tour 20-plus events out of the year.
“Obviously the PGA TOUR is where I play mostly but I want to make sure that these guys understand how special this tour is, how special I think it is, and then what I think of them as golfers. I think they are really great players out here.
“I think it's honestly - quality and talent-wise - I think it's the second-best tour in the world, and you see it on a regular basis. And the more I come over here the more, I'm impressed by the way these guys play on TV.
“I always have but when you see it in person you get a better perspective of the players.”
Although stars like Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Brooks Koepka all had the option to compete in the DP World Tour Championship, Horschel doesn’t fault them for skipping the trip to Dubai.
Reflecting on his own journey, however, he passionately believes that traveling the world not only sharpens your game but also broadens your perspective and makes you a better person.
“Yes and no,” replied Horschel when asked if he was surprised more players didn’t follow his path in competing around the world.
“I've talked about this quite a bit. Listen, I have a different view of the game of golf and the world of golf. I grew up watching The European Tour. I grew up envisioning coming over here and playing these events, and even as I turned pro early in my career, I still watched a ton of it and envisioned coming over and playing.
“So you know, like I said, my college coach said if you want to be a world-class player, global player, you've got to travel around the world ask play well and you've got to win events to consider yourself a world-class player.
“I don't fault the guys in America. That's the decision they made but listen, when the Tour started doing financially a lot better than the DP World, or European Tour at the time, 20 years ago, it changed the ways that guys don't have to travel and guys are very much American centric.
“Like I said, I don't fault them for it but I think when you think about the game of golf, giving back and traveling around the world where people can watch and you see you take pictures with you, sign autographs, that's one way to sort of give back to the game of golf.
“And I think they would grow as people, too, by traveling more around the world and experiencing more culture and experiencing different languages and everything.
“I always encourage guys to travel and always encourage guys to come over and play even if it's a couple events out of the year. At the end of the day, it's their decision and they do what's best for them and that's their choice. You can't fault them for the decision they make.”
The DP World Tour Championship gets underway at Jumeirah Golf Estates on November 14.
