Rory McIlroy capped off a fantastic – if at times frustrating – season by winning the DP World Tour Championship for the third time and the Race to Dubai title for a sixth time. He ground out the victory by two strokes ahead of Denmark’s Rasmus Højgaard to finish on -15. McIlroy’s triumph – and the massive pay cheques that come with both the tournament win and the Race to Dubai title – will reduce the disappointment of going yet another year without a Major title. His four Major wins all came between 2011 and 2014, and he hasn’t been able to get over the line since.
Still, the fact that this is the sixth time he’s been awarded the Harry Vardon Trophy puts him level with the great Seve Ballesteros, and just two behind record holder Colin Montgomerie who won it eight times. His third win in the DP World Tour Championship makes him the joint record holder with Jon Rahm. With 6,997.66 Race to Dubai points, McIlroy was almost 3,000 points ahead of his nearest rival, Rasmus Højgaard – the man who finished second to him in the DP World Tour Championship. This is despite Rory having played 11 fewer qualifying tournaments than the Dane.
So let’s take a look back at how the great golfer from Holywood, County Down, achieved this year’s success from his appearances at just 12 of the 44 qualifying tournaments.
Rory’s Path to Race to Dubai Title Number Six
McIlroy spent most of 2024 playing on the PGA Tour (with a sojourn for the Olympics in Paris in August). But even dipping his toe into the DP World Tour, coupled with the points he earned at the Majors, allowed him to top the table in the Race to Dubai title race. Here’s how he got on in the relevant tournaments.
Dubai Invitational – 2nd Place – 261 Points
Having chosen to miss the opening six DP World Tour events, Rory made a solid start to proceedings in January when he finished second at the Dubai Invitational. In a low-scoring tournament, Rory missed out by a single stroke to Tommy Fleetwood, who won with a score of -19. Still, McIlroy got his Race to Dubai underway.
Dubai Desert Classic – 1st Place – 1,335 Points
His first win on the DP World Tour came at the very next tournament as he won the Dubai Desert Classic for the fourth time (and the second year in a row). His score of 14 under par was enough to stave off the challenge of Polish golfer Adrian Meronk, who ended the tournament a shot back. As it was a Rolex Series event, McIlroy earned extra points in the Race to Dubai.
The Masters – 22nd Place – 103.5 Points
The Majors count towards the Race to Dubai, but once again Rory couldn’t find his rhythm at Augusta, and he failed to win the Masters – the only Major that still eludes him. Tied for 22nd was at least better than the previous attempt, when he failed to make the cut.
US PGA Championship – 12th Place – 151.5 Points
Another Major, another near-miss for McIlroy. Of course, 12th in such a prestigious tournament isn’t bad at all, but he was nine shots back from winner Xander Schauffele. It was his second-round score of 71 that cost Rory, but Schauffele was on fire that weekend and would’ve taken some catching anyway.
US Open – 2nd Place – 1,113 Points
It was a poor (for him!) second-round score that cost McIlroy at the US Open too as he was beaten to glory by a single shot by Bryson DeChambeau. Rory’s score of 72 in the second round was the difference as the Northern Irishman came agonisingly close to breaking his 10-year Major drought.
Scottish Open – 4th Place – 272.9 Points
Back to Europe and McIlroy had a decent tilt at the Scottish Open as he posted rounds of 65, 66, 67 and 68 to finish in tied-fourth. He was four shots behind the eventual winner Robert McIntyre, but it set Rory up nicely for a proper go at the Open the following week.
The Open – 125th Place – 0 Points
Alas, things went pear-shaped for McIlroy at Royal Troon as he shot an appalling opening round of 78, seven over par. That all but ended his hopes of winning the tournament, but a decent second round could at least give him a fighting chance of making a decent fist of things. Unfortunately, his second round wasn’t much better, and after scoring only 75, he missed the cut.
Irish Open – 2nd Place – 555 Points
Things were better for McIlroy on home soil as he almost landed the Irish Open for the first time since 2016. Unfortunately, he was narrowly beaten by a single stroke by Rasmus Højgaard, but Rory would have the last laugh come the end of the campaign!
BMW PGA Championship – 2nd Place – 694.5 Points
Another near miss came the following week in the PGA Championship at Wentworth, this time McIlroy lost in a three-way playoff. Billy Horschel did enough to secure his second victory in the tournament.
Alfred Dunhill Links Championship – 25th Place – 45.9 Points
Things didn’t go to plan for Rory at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews. He scored respectably – 69, 69, 68, 68 – but that wasn’t enough and he finished 10 shots back from the winner Tyrrell Hatton.
Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship – 3rd Place – 465.3 Points
As the Race to Dubai was nearing its climax, McIlroy found some fine form in the penultimate event, the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. He ended in a tie for third, three shots behind the winner Paul Waring and a shot behind the in-form Tyrrell Hatton. Rory’s rounds of 67, 67, 69 and 64 set him up perfectly for the season finale.
DP World Tour Championship – 1st Place – 2,000 Points
Majors aside, Rory has a habit of delivering on the biggest stages. And he certainly did that in the DP World Tour Championship as he posted scores of 67, 69, 68, and 69 to beat Højgaard by two shots and land the winner’s cheque for a cool €2,842,443.
The Race to Dubai wasn’t exactly close by that point, as Rory’s nearest rival, Thriston Lawrence, would have needed to win the tournament with McIlroy finishing outside the top 11. But winning this tournament gave McIlroy 2,000 points and made the Race to Dubai victory rather conclusive in the end. He finished with more than double the points earned by Lawrence, having played fewer than half the number of tournaments!
Whether this fine end to the Race to Dubai will allow Rory to kick on in 2025, and finally land another Major, remains to be seen. But it certainly can’t do any harm to either his confidence… or his bank balance!