Justin Rose prevailed on a final day of intense drama at the UBS Hong Kong Open to win his first European Tour title of the season and fire himself into The Race to Dubai’s top four ahead of the Final Series, which culminates in the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, taking place at Jumeirah Golf Estates from Thursday 19 to Sunday 22 November.
Rose denied talented Dane Lucas Bjerregaard from claiming his maiden title with a one-stroke victory at Hong Kong Golf Club to claim 289,947 Race to Dubai Points which takes his total for the season to 2,528,223 and sees him breathing down the necks of leader, Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy, Englishman Danny Willett and South African Louis Oosthuizen as the Englishman bids to be crowned European Number One for the first time since 2007.
“Dubai, especially, is a tournament I’ve played well at in the past,” said Rose, who was runner-up at the DP World Tour Championship last year and also in 2012.
“I’ve had a couple of second-place finishes at Jumeirah Golf Estates. I’d love to break that duck, as well. - Rose
“And if you win in Dubai, you’ve got a great opportunity to wrap things (The Race to Dubai) up, so I’m looking forward to the next few weeks.”
Bjerregaard, meanwhile, pushed the former US Open Champion all the way - a double bogey on the 14th proving pivotal as he finished one stroke back on 16 under par 264 to claim 193,298 Race to Dubai Points which sees him climb from 85th to 59th in the rankings and in with a great chance of securing a debut spot in the season-ending grand finale in Dubai, which is open to the top 60 available players.
“It was a fun battle with Justin these last two days,” said Bjerregaard. “It’s guys like him that I want to go out and compete against, and at least I gave him a little bit of a scare.”
American Patrick Reed, who is focusing on the final run of events on The European Tour to ensure he is eligible for the DP World Tour Championship, produced an impressive final round 67 to share third place with Australia’s Jason Scrivener, Korea’s Soomin Lee and the ever-impressive rising English star Matthew Fitzpatrick, who lies 12th in The Race to Dubai.
General admission to the season ending DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates is free of charge and can be obtained by registering online at www.DPWorldTourChampionship.com. Those who register will also be placed into a prize draw for the chance to win a VIP Hospitality package for the Championship Chalet.
