Rory McIlroy Clinches DP World Tour Season Title With One Event Remaining

The Ulsterman didn't play last weekend in South Africa but Max Homa's win there sealed McIlroy's fifth Race to Dubai title.

Rory McIlroy has not played an official event since September, but he still captured a significant title on Sunday: the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai.

With Max Homa’s victory at the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa, McIlroy was assured of the season-long points total heading into this week’s final event, the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. He will earn a $2 million bonus.

McIlroy will win the title for the fifth time as he is 2,083 points ahead of Masters champion Jon Rahm heading into this week’s event for the top 50 players in the standings. The winner gets 2,000 points.

Rory McIlroy will play in the DP World Tour season finale this week along with most of his Ryder Cup teammates :: Adam Cairns/USA TODAY Sports

Unlike the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup, won by Viktor Hovland, the DP World Tour’s structure does not reset for the final event.

Ryan Fox and Adrian Meronk were the only players competing in South Africa with a chance to catch McIlroy, whose nine official DP World Tour starts include the major championships.

McIlroy won a $2 million bonus with other amounts paid out down the final list. The final event has a $10 million purse with $3 million going to the winner.

He will be joined this week by defending champion Rahm and a total of 10 players from the winning European Ryder Cup team, including Matt Fitzpatrick and Tyrrell Hatton.

McIlroy clinched the title with a year that saw him win the Hero Dubai Desert Classic and the Genesis Scottish Open in addition to three top-seven finishes in the major championships. He also reached the semifinals of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Championship.

McIlroy, 34, also won the European tour’s top prize in 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2022.