Brilliant Mcilroy stays at the top of the Race to Dubai with continued great form after latest win
AFTER taking the lead on The European Tour’s Race to Dubai with a stunning win at the 143rd Open Championship two weeks ago, Rory McIlroy further cemented his place at the summit by coming from behind to defeat Sergio Garcia by two shots at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
Trailing by three shots going into the final round, McIlroy fired four birdies in the opening five holes to take a two-shot lead over Garcia early on. However, the Spaniard fought back to ensure the pair were all square going into the final nine holes but in the end it was McIlroy who held his nerve to close the final round with a four-under par 66 and finish the tournament on 15-under, two shots ahead of Garcia.
“What I am really proud of this week is following on from The Open with a performance like this,” McIlroy said after the win.
“I said straight after I did not want any let down, I wanted to keep going and performing until the end of the season.”
The 25-year-old won The European Tour’s flagship event, the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, in May to move to second on The Race to Dubai and ensure he would qualify for the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. His first Open Championship win at Royal Liverpool late last month took him to top spot on The Race to Dubai rankings and also moved him to second in the Official World Golf Rankings.
McIlroy’s come-from-behind win at Firestone Country Club now takes the Northern Irishman to number one in the Official World Golf Rankings for the first time since March 2013 as he surpasses Adam Scott, who finished outside the top five at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
After losing out to McIlroy there was some solace for runner-up Garcia as he now replaces Thomas Bjorn in second place on The Race to Dubai with €2,242,117 in prize money. The Dane finished in a tie for 15th after carding four rounds in the 60s.
Four of the current top five players on the Official World Golf Ranking – Rory McIlroy, Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson and Justin Rose – are now confirmed to compete in The European Tour’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship, taking place at the Jumeirah Golf Estates from Thursday 20th November to Sunday 23rd November.
A tied-fourth place finish for England’s Justin Rose at Firestone means that he takes over sixth spot from Stephen Gallacher while Graeme McDowell carded a final round of 66 to replace Louis Oosthuizen and move into the top ten of The Race to Dubai rankings.
Lee Westwood, who won the inaugural Race to Dubai in 2009, moved three places from 22nd to 19th in the rankings after he shot a majestic seven-under 63 in the final round to finish the tournament in a tie for 19th place.
BMW International Open winner Fabrizio Zanotti continued his good run of form as the Paraguayan finished tied for 26th to move from 27th to 24th on The Race to Dubai rankings.
The stage is now set for the US PGA Championship, the final Major of the season, which gets underway on Thursday at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville USA.
The top 10 European Tour’s Race to Dubai rankings as of 4 August:
1. Rory MCILROY €3,774,512
2. Sergio GARCIA €2,242,117
3. Thomas BJORN €1,693 987
4. Martin KAYMER €1,568,692
5. Jamie DONALDSON €1,475,962
6. Justin ROSE €1,440,958
7. Stephen GALLACHER €1,282,389
8. Victor DUBUISSON €1,261,407
9. Henrik STENSON €1,257,456
10. Graeme MCDOWELL €1,199,391
