Only one day remains to the start of The Race to Dubai and Robert Karlsson, who won The 2008 European Tour Order of Merit, becoming the first Swedish golfer to do so, has added his voice to the chorus of approval.
Karlsson said:"It’s great The Race to Dubai is almost here. This takes The European Tour to a new level and hopefully we can grow even stronger and put up a really good fight with the US PGA Tour to become the strongest Tour in the world.
"The Race to Dubai is a tremendously exciting development for everyone involved with The European Tour and European golf as a whole, and something which has made the whole world of golf sit up and take notice.
"It goes without saying that I am thrilled to finish the 2008 season as European Number One and be the first Swedish player to achieve that feat. However, it would be doubly thrilling to then defend that title in the inaugural Race to Dubai."
The Swede added his thoughts to those of his European Tour colleagues:
Padraig Harrington said: "The Race to Dubai will add some sparkle. There has been an issue with it [the Order of Merit] the last couple of years. It is an achievement for any guy to win it but The Race to Dubai will give it more hype, make it more exciting. Many of the professionals, including myself, are playing with our schedules to give ourselves the best chance to get out there and win it. I definitely see myself playing more in Europe next year. I would like to give myself a good chance of winning it, especially in its first year."
Lee Westwood: "I think it is exciting. The Dubai World Championship will be a great finale. We have had a year to think about it and it is finally here. There will be gradual build up through the year heading to Dubai so it will be great to have the end of season event there in the height of their season. I’ll be starting my campaign in Pearl Valley so will have given everyone a head start but hopefully I’ll be there at the end. Dubai have done a lot for The European Tour over the years and they are taking that commitment further which is great."
Miguel Angel Jiménez:"The good thing about The Race to Dubai is that we are growing. There will be big interest and shows there is a lot of confidence in The European Tour. Things are growing fast and with The Race to Dubai, all the players will get the benefit from that. The players will get ready for this and that is one of the targets for all players at the beginning of the season."
Henrik Stenson:"It’s a brand new era that we are starting with The Race to Dubai and it is going to be very exciting to be part of it. It’s going to be a long season with a lot of good tournaments leading up to The Dubai World Championship and as I like it down in Dubai, I wouldn’t mind playing well in the final as well. Everyone is looking forward to it. The finale is obviously about a year away but we’re going to get a little bit of a taste throughout the season and there is definitely going to be a focus on it. This is brand new so it is going to be a tough test for everybody."
Ross Fisher:"The start of The Race to Dubai is massive for me and all the guys on the Tour and The European Tour as a whole. This can only make The European Tour bigger and better. There are rumours that guys will come over from the States, there is more money pumped in, bigger tournaments and it is global. Starting in China and finishing in Dubai we will visit some wild and wonderful places and I am really looking forward to it and being part of it. I have good memories of the HSBC last year and while it was disappointing not to win last year, I then played the two events in South Africa and I was top of the Order of Merit for a couple of months. That was a nice feeling. Hopefully I can go better than last year when The Race to Dubai starts."
Graeme McDowell:"The Race to Dubai is our answer to the FedEx Cup. There is a massive emphasis on getting into the top 60 and getting into that massive event at the end of the season. It’s exciting to be involved with Dubai and be involved in a market like that right now. Everyone is excited about what this will mean and how it will shape the Tour. Everyone is talking about the start and these are exciting times."
Martin Kaymer:"It is a new period for The European Tour. The European Tour is becoming increasingly global and that brings great opportunities for us as players to play all over the world and it is particularly exciting finishing in Dubai. It’s exciting that The Race to Dubai is about to start."
Oliver Wilson: “The Race to Dubai is an incredible opportunity for everyone. It is making The European Tour a truly world tour and it is bringing a massive amount of money and sponsorship to it. It is pushing golf forward to a new level. We will be a bigger rival to the US PGA Tour than we have ever been and it will be the closest thing we have to a world tour. Everyone will come and play here. The second half of the season in particular looks fantastic, the best schedule I have ever seen. There is a lot of excitement and we are looking forward to it. It is amazing that it is here. It is all changing for the better and it will be fantastic to look back in a year’s time to see how it has improved things. It is such a fantastic opportunity for golf right now."
Sergio Garcia: "I want to be in it and I want to win it! The Race to Dubai represents a real statement of intent by The European Tour and by Dubai. The Tour has clearly moved up a gear in its ability to attract the world’s best players and Dubai has reinforced its position as a centre of world golf. It will certainly help focus the interest of the players throughout the year and I for one will be seeking to get to Dubai and make a great finish to the season.
"Everybody I have talked to on both sides of the Atlantic is very positive about this development. The Race to Dubai is great and will take The European Tour and European golf to a new level and where it is supposed to be. We are all very excited and looking forward to seeing how it goes.
"A good week in Shanghai would be the perfect start to the season and it would be great to build up the winnings for The Race to Dubai standings. I was pleased with this season but I believe I can take some big steps forward in the coming year and Shanghai is the place to start."
Paul Casey: "I think this could be a new era. As soon as you finish the US PGA in August there is a shift in focus. For guys in the US it’s the FedEx Cup, for guys over here it is going to be towards The Race to Dubai and you can’t blame them. I’m sure part of it is about the money but part of it is about winning. For me it’s about the title. I came close to winning The Order of Merit in 2006 and I’d love to be the head guy winning The Race to Dubai, that would be pretty sweet."
Darren Clarke: "I will be in China for the start and I am definitely excited about it. The Race to Dubai will build to a massive finale for The European Tour. The Tour is in a great position right now and the fact that we are going to finish our season in Dubai, fantastic sponsors and supporters, is a very exciting time for us. The prize purse for all of us to play for with the bonus money makes it a very exciting time. I am sure all the guys will be totally committed to Europe to make sure they are there and have a chance. I want to be there in Dubai at the end of next year, at Jumeirah Estates trying to win the first prize."
Richard Green: "It’s very exciting. Financially, the tournament at the end of the year gives you a lot of incentive. I will try and do what I normally do, achieve the goals I set at the start of the year and that has always got me into the end of season championship so hopefully that works again next year. It’s very exciting, that’s for sure, but as important a good start is, it is also important to be consistent through the year. I have always prided myself in being consistent and hopefully that will be good enough to give myself a chance at the end of the year."
Søren Hansen: "I am excited about the start. I think we might get some really classy players to play, maybe some of the Americans will come and play when their season is over. It proves once again that The European Tour is very strong and it is feature that will make the Europeans playing a little more in the States think about playing more in Europe. It is a sign that the Tour is growing and that is lovely."
Grégory Havret: "This is the start of something very new and exciting. We will have a stronger Tour and maybe we will see more big names in tournaments. It is finally arriving after so much talk. Dubai has been very good for us and this is a step up. The new schedule looks fantastic and a new event in France to look forward to at the end of the season. That will be an important one and should have a strong field. There are a lot of good things to look forward to. This first tournament is very important and with a good result you might already be booked in Dubai 12 months in advance."
