As the destiny of the Race to Dubai title was finally decided in dramatic circumstances, a host of talking points emerged from Jumeirah Golf Estates' Earth Course.
From the nerve-shredding conclusion to the season-long points race to one of the feelgood stories of the season, we look back at the key takeaways and what we learned.
A relentless race
One of the most gripping and unpredictable season-long points races reached its climax at the DP World Tour Championship. For so long Tommy Fleetwood led the Rankings thanks to victories at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and HNA Open de France, but a sudden shift in October saw the 26 year old’s advantage diminish. Justin Rose posted back-to-back wins at the WGC-HSBC Champions and Turkish Airlines Open to weaken Fleetwood’s grip on the Race to Dubai title and then saw the pendulum swing in his favour heading into the final round at the Earth Course.
As Rose faltered on the back nine, Fleetwood did enough to claim the glory and celebrate his most successful year on tour with his wife and new-born son. The tense nature of the race owes much to Rose’s brilliance in China and Turkey in successive weeks, but Fleetwood’s relentless pace-setting made him a worthy champion. The Sunday shootout to take the honours made this one of the most fascinating conclusions to a season in recent memory.
Tommy's honour
Tommy Fleetwood signed off the 2016 season ranked 41st in the Race to Dubai Rankings. A promising end to the year, including a share of ninth in Dubai, followed a mixed 12 months, but ultimately set him up for a campaign few would have predicted. Although his first victory of the year came in January in Abu Dhabi, it was a tie for third at the UBS Hong Kong Open in the first event of the season that set the tone for what was to come. In the wake of the Englishman's success in the Middle East came a runner-up finish to Dustin Johnson at the WGC-Mexico Championship and a play-off defeat to Bernd Wiesberger at the Shenzhen International. Another defining moment came in June, when Fleetwood posted his first top five in a Major when he claimed a share of fourth at the US Open.
Such form meant the level of attention swelled and he arrived at events with the favourite tag. Perhaps it was no surprise, then, that his impressive US Open showing preceded two more top tens and a victory at Le Golf National. By this point Fleetwood was answering questions about the possibility of taking top spot come Dubai. Such talk became more frequent, particularly after he took a top six finish at the Italian Open, before Rose claimed centre stage for the following few weeks. It is to Fleetwood’s credit that he managed to fend off one of the most decorated Europeans of the last 15 years and cap off a year he will never forget.
Rookies on a roll
While Rookie of the Year Jon Rahm enjoyed another sublime result last week, a host of other newcomers deserve the spotlight for their performance in the desert. Dylan Frittelli will deservedly take a lot of attention for the thrilling pace he kept with Justin Rose early on Sunday and the tie for fourth he eventually laid his hands on. His Lyoness Open win in June suggests the former University of Texas alumnus could be one to watch in 2018.
Alexander Björk and Matthieu Pavon also deserve kudos for their top 20 finishes that kept them comfortably inside the top 60 in the Rankings in their first years out on tour. The step from the Challenge Tour to the European Tour can be a demanding one, but this year’s crop of rookies, including Ryan Fox and Jordan Smith, can take great heart that they passed a series of tests with flying colours.
Best of the best
When the big occasions came to the fore, so did some of the European Tour's most accomplished players. Alex Noren, winner of four European Tour events in 2016, got the Rolex Series ball rolling by winning the BMW PGA Championship title in May thanks to a stunning final round of 62. Race to Dubai Rankings winner Tommy Fleetwood secured his third European Tour title at the HNA Open de France, before Jon Rahm, who finished the season ranked fourth in the world, claimed the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open. Rafa Cabrera Bello, a member of the European Ryder Cup team in 2016, came out on top via a play-off to win the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open a week before finishing fourth at The Open Championship.
Tyrrell Hatton claimed his second title in as many weeks at the Italian Open, before 2013 US Open Champion Justin Rose won the Turkish Airlines Open to complete a memorable couple of weeks for the 37 year old. Branden Grace, now eight times a European Tour winner, won on home soil at the Nedbank Golf Challenge hosted by Gary Player and Rahm capped the series off with a second Rolex Series victory in Dubai. The cream has most certainly risen to the top given that six of the seven Rolex Series winners have finished the season in the top 20 in the Official World Golf Ranking
12 months later...
Just twelve months ago Dean Burmester finished 140th in the Race to Dubai Rankings and was without regular playing privileges heading into the new season. Yesterday the South African finished in a share of fourth in the season-ending DP World Tour Championship and secured 41st place in the Rankings. Quite the turnaround.
It all started with an impressive performance in the BMW SA Open hosted by the City of Ekurhuleni, which allowed him to tee it up at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Following seventh place in the Middle East, he was on a roll and arrived at the Tshwane Open full of confidence. Victory by three shots in front of his family at Pretoria CC meant he earned an exemption until the end of next season. For the 28 year old to completely change the course of his year with such a fine start surely makes his season one of the real success stories of 2017.
