There are just two rounds left on The Race to Dubai and it is all still to play for as the Dubai World Championship presented by: DP World heads to its climax.

Lee Westwood is exactly where he needs to be, leading the field, but Rory McIlroy is hot on his heels after a pulsating second day over the Earth course at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

Westwood needs at least a top seven finish to have any chance of overtaking McIlroy but knows that victory for either player will put the matter beyond doubt. His second round 69 took him to nine under par and two clear of his younger rival, who also carded a 69.

As things stand, Westwood is on course to become Number One as victory would take him past the current incumbent, McIlroy. Martin Kaymer and Ross Fisher are the other two players who started the week with a chance to finish Number One but they have a mountain to climb. Kaymer, joint 24th after Round Two, has to finish in the top four to stand any chance while Fisher, down in joint 39th place after two rounds, needs first or second, and even that might not be good enough with both McIlroy and Westwood going so well.

So while it is shaping up for a battle between the top two over the weekend, there is also plenty to play for in terms of The Race to Dubai Bonus Pool, with the top 15 sharing the $7.5 million bonus.

Looking at the leaderboard after the second round, Padraig Harrington and Robert Allenby are on-course to claim a share of the Bonus Pool, as their current positions would lift them into the top 15, Allenby advancing from 22nd to 15th and Harrington from 18th to 12th. That would bump both Gonzalo Fernandez-Castaño and Peter Hanson out of the top 15 and deny both their share of the Bonus Pool.

The 15th placed player in The Race to Dubai will earn €124,601 so Hanson, who occupied that all-important 15th spot heading into the Dubai World Championship, needs a good weekend to climb the leaderboard from 32nd place if he is to stay in the top 15, as does Fernandez-Castaño, the 14th ranked player.

The final position in The 2009 Race to Dubai will also determine entry for next year’s Open Championship, US Open and WGC – CA Championship with the top 15 securing a place in the US Open, the top 20 will get in the WGC – CA Championship and top 30 into The 2010 Open Championship at St Andrews.
With so much at stake, it will be a sprint to the line this weekend.