Rory McIlroy is looking for more of the same to sign off his season with a double celebration at the DP World Tour Championship.
McIlroy has been Mr Consistent this year and tops the DP World Tour Rankings in Partnership with Rolex ahead of the season finale.
The World Number One claimed the PGA TOUR’s FedEx Cup in August and is looking forward to returning to a happy hunting ground to try to add another couple of trophies to his collection.
"I've had some success around here and I've had some great memories in Dubai in general," McIlroy said ahead of teeing it up at the fifth and final Rolex Series event of the year. "I've won four times across this tournament and the Desert Classic.
"It's a nice feeling to come back here and have a chance to win the season title. It's been a few years but with my consistent play this year and obviously in the Majors and some of the bigger events, I find myself in a nice position. So it's nice to come in with not just one but two things at stake. I'm excited to get going."
McIlroy will bring the curtain down on this campaign after Sunday and is determined to finish on a high.
He said: "This is my last event of the season. The way I've played throughout the year, I've been so consistent, especially the last six or seven months post-Augusta.
"I feel like my game is in good shape. I would be slightly disappointed if I walked away from here knowing I didn't play as well as I can, and I know if I do play like that, I'll give myself a good chance.
"A golf course like this plays right into my strengths, four par-fives. So par-72s are usually golf courses that I excel on because of the four par-fives and because I'm able to play the par-fives quite well because of my length."
Ryan Fox is the closest challenger to McIlroy in the race for the Harry Vardon Trophy.
The New Zealander is a two-time winner in 2022 and arrives in the Middle East having missed out by a shot to Tommy Fleetwood in Sun City last week.
McIlroy said: "He's had an amazing season. I think he went from 217th in the world up to 23rd. That's an amazing climb. You have to play great golf and you have to play consistently great golf over a decent period of time to get that high. And he's done that playing golf tournaments that don't necessarily provide as high World Ranking points as some others, so he's done a phenomenal job this year.
"He's played well last week and he won the Dunhill. He's had an amazing season. It's great to see.
"I don't know him well but he seems like a lovely guy, and I'm looking forward to playing with him on Thursday."
Five things to know ahead of the season finale in Dubai 🏆#DPWTC | #RolexSeries
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 15, 2022
McIlroy was in the mix in the four Majors this year without adding to the four he has in his cabinet. But he knows those performances stand him in good stead.
He added: "I didn't win one of the big four but second at Augusta, third at The Open, fifth at the U.S. Open and eighth at the PGA, it's been very consistent.
"I've said this year felt very similar to 2019, very similar numbers in terms of strokes gained.
"If anything, I was a little better this year stats-wise. Better around the greens. Definitely putted better. It's the first time I ever finished in the top 20 in putting on the PGA TOUR this year.
"So it's really nice at this stage of my career, 15 years in, I'm still finding ways to improve. That's a really positive thing going forward.
"It's been a great year and I'm excited to see where I go from here because as I said, those improvements 15 years into a career is something that excites me."
