Heading into the home stretch and into the final round of the 2024 DP World Tour Championship, they are off by three penalties as Rory McIlroy shares the lead with Rasmus Højgaard and Antoine Rozner at 12 under with 18 holes left to play in the European final. Fellow Europeans Shane Lowry, Robert MacIntyre and Tyrrell Hatton are still within reach, as are Joaquin Niemann and Adam Scott, who round out the top 10.
“It is [exciting]. Right at the top,” McIlroy said. “You know, going to a golf course that I really like and where I've had success before.” Yeah, look, it's a great opportunity to end the year on a really good note. I’m going to go out there tomorrow and give it everything I can and hopefully I can do it all so that I can stand on the 18th green with both trophies.”
With his play through three rounds, McIlroy all but secured his third straight Race to Dubai title and the sixth of his career. Since the 35-year-old started the week with a considerable lead over Thirston Lawrence, he had to finish 11th or better on his own to put the finishing touches to the season's race. He appears to have done just that but will be aiming for more with a fourth win of the season on the cards should he emerge from the top group.
McIlroy was just at the lead at the start of the weekend and again needed a quick start as Højgaard increased the pace at the front. The Dane made six birdies over a seven-hole stretch on his outer half, turned around in 30 minutes and took the lead heading into the back nine.
However, the circles disappeared from his scorecard as Højgaard signed nine straight pars to get into the house at 12 under. This left the door open for McIlroy, who trailed by as many as three in the early stages of the third lap. After swapping a birdie for a bogey on the turn, the Northern Irishman took over the pacesetter thanks to consecutive birdies on numbers 11 and 12.
Much like Højgaard, McIlroy faltered in the closing stages at Jumeirah Estates with six pars on his final six holes, allowing a third player to move into the lead. A final eagle off the blade from Rozner catapulted the 36-hole leader's name to a share of the 54-hole lead and set the stage for a career-changing day in Dubai.
“After the birdie on 12 I had a good chance, I hit a really good shot on 13 and just about caught the edge,” McIlroy said. “And then there are 14 and 15 birdie holes, and I can't make birdies on any of them, and I only go to the last green with a 6-iron in my hand and I can't make birdie there either. I was a little disappointed with how I played this one. “Although I’m down to the last five holes, I’m obviously still in a really good position for tomorrow.”
While McIlroy looks to add another accolade to his long resume, both Højgaard and Rozner are playing for more than just a trophy. A year after Højgaard narrowly lost the last spot on the Race to Dubai leaderboard to qualify for a PGA Tour card, he has set his sights on usurping Lawrence as the top finisher and himself to fight his way into the first two signature events of the 2025 PGA Tour season.
For Rozner, a PGA Tour card could be a pleasant surprise. As the Frenchman starts the week four places outside the cut-off point, he is expected to move up 19 places in the Race to Dubai standings with a win and within the margin required to secure playing privileges in the US.
“To be honest, I don’t know what to tell you right now because I’m going to try to focus on tomorrow and only tomorrow,” Rozner said. “Getting a good result and that’s the only thing that matters to me now. I have to come out with the right attitude and yeah, do my best and we’ll see how it goes in the end.”