Matt Fitzpatrick defeated Rory McIlroy on the first playoff hole to win the DP World Tour Championship. It is his tenth career DP World Tour win and third time winning the DP World Tour Championship.
The top of the leaderboard after three rounds was littered with European Ryder Cup players. McIlroy and Neergaard-Petersen shared the lead at 13-under after 54 holes. Fitzpatrick, Rasmus Hojgaard, Tyrrell Hatton and Tommy Fleetwood were four of the six golfers at 12-under. Three more Ryder Cup players in Ludvig Aberg, Justin Rose and 36-hole-leader Nicolai Hojgaard sat at 11-under.
Fitzpatrick started early with birdies on three of his first five holes. He was at 15-under when he made the turn to the back nine. McIlroy started his final round with back-to-back birdies. He also birdied the 5th and 7th hole to get to 17-under with nine holes to play.
McIlroy birdied the 11th hole but then bogeyed the 12th and 16th to land at 16-under. Fitzpatrick birdied the 14th and 15th holes to take the lead at 17-under. A birdie on the last hole gave Fitzpatrick the clubhouse lead at 18-under. McIlroy’s birdie putt on the 17th hole lipped out, leaving him needing an eagle to force a playoff. He found the green in two and left himself a 15-feet putt for eagle and a spot in a playoff. He stepped up and made the putt to send the season finale to a playoff.
On the first playoff hole, Fitzpatrick hit the fairway while McIlroy found the penalty area. Fitzpatrick laid up and McIlroy tried to go for the green after his drop, but he missed right into the bunker. McIlroy’s bunker shot stayed at the top of the slope leaving him a long par putt.
Fitzpatrick missed the green with his third but hit his chip shot to two feet. McIlroy’s par putt was rolling right into the center of the cup but stopped a couple inches short, ultimately leaving him a tap-in for bogey. Fitzpatrick made his short par putt to claim his first victory on the DP World Tour since 2023.
Fitzpatrick also won the DP World Tour Championship in 2016 and 2020. But McIlroy didn’t leave empty handed – this is his fourth consecutive Race to Dubai title and the seventh of his career. He is one behind Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight.
With the DP World Tour season over, there are 10 members who have earned PGA Tour status for the 2026 season. Marco Penge, who finished second on the Race to Dubai rankings, highlights the group of players.
Top 10 DP World Tour Members to Earn PGA Tour Status in 2026
- Marco Penge
- Laurie Canter
- Kristoffer Reitan
- Adrien Saddier
- Alex Noren
- John Parry
- Haotong Li
- Keita Nakajima
- Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen
- Jordan Smith
