Analysis
DP World Tour playoffs: UAE plan stands, but a Spanish back-up waits
The tour insists November's Abu Dhabi and Dubai finales will go ahead despite the Iran conflict, while reports say Sotogrande is lined up as a contingency. Matt Fitzpatrick, leading in Paris, is among the players with doubts.
Matt Fitzpatrick leads the FedEx Open de France at halfway, 13 under and one clear at Le Golf National. He has also said he is not comfortable travelling to the Middle East for the tour’s play-off events in November. The tour says they are going ahead as planned.
The DP World Tour season ends with two play-off events in the United Arab Emirates:
- Abu Dhabi Championship, Yas Links, 5–8 November
- DP World Tour Championship, Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, 12–15 November
Both carry heavy weight in the final Race to Dubai standings, which also help decide the PGA TOUR cards on offer to the tour’s leading players.
Guy Kinnings, chief executive of the DP World Tour, told Sky Sports: “Our plan is definitely to play the Play-Offs in the UAE.” He added that building work had already started at both venues and that the tour is taking advice from travel and security experts as the situation develops.
The Daily Mail reported that the tour has also looked at Real Club de Golf Sotogrande in southern Spain, as well as clubs in Portugal, as possible replacement venues; Golfmagic and Golf Monthly picked up the report. Golf Monthly reports that under the contingency the Abu Dhabi event would be dropped and the Dubai field expanded to 70 players. The tour has not confirmed those details, and no deadline for a final decision has been announced.
Fitzpatrick, who won the DP World Tour Championship last year and has recently become a father, first raised his concerns at Wentworth during the BMW PGA Championship. He told reporters that, as things stood, he would not feel comfortable making the trip, and criticised what he saw as a lack of clear communication from the tour about how the decision would be made. He pointed to Formula 1, which has called off races in the region this year, as a precedent.
Rory McIlroy said he trusted local governments not to put visitors in harm’s way if they judged it safe to host the events.
We think a finale without some of the players in contention would defeat the point of a play-off.
A win in Paris on Sunday would push Fitzpatrick further up the Race to Dubai. He is next due to play at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
Sources
- Sky Sports: Guy Kinnings confirms plan to stage Play-Offs in Middle East despite player safety concerns
- Golf Channel: Matt Fitzpatrick voices trepidation about travelling to the Middle East for DP World Tour playoffs
- Golfmagic: DP World Tour considers European back-up venues amid UAE Playoffs uncertainty
- Golf Monthly: This week in golf
- DP World Tour: FedEx Open de France leaderboard
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