Tommy Fleetwood is looking to end the year impressively as the UAE swing of the DP World Tour takes centre stage.
Yas Links is this week’s venue for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, which is the penultimate event before the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai next week.
Fleetwood was frustrated with his game during the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship despite finishing third behind Tyrrell Hatton and Nicolas Colsaerts.
| Race to Dubai ranking | Player | Race to Dubai points – 2024 |
| 1 | MCILROY, Rory | 4,532.33 |
| 2 | LAWRENCE, Thriston | 2,959.94 |
| 3 | HØJGAARD, Rasmus | 2,612.05 |
| 4 | HORSCHEL, Billy | 2,480.00 |
| 5 | FLEETWOOD, Tommy | 2,066.01 |
| 6 | MANASSERO, Matteo | 2,039.03 |
| 7 | NORGAARD, Niklas | 2,027.03 |
| 8 | SVENSSON, Jesper | 1,977.34 |
| 9 | MACINTYRE, Robert | 1,975.65 |
| 10 | HOSHINO, Rikuya | 1,820.11 |
The Englishman is currently fifth in the Race to Dubai standings and looking to cut the gap to red-hot favourite Rory McIlroy.
Fleetwood is a two-time winner of the HSBC but has struggled since the tournament moved venues from Abu Dhabi Golf Club in 2022. The 33-year-old’s best finish is 38th, which came 12 months ago.
Tommy Fleetwood addresses Yas Links struggles at the HSBC Championship
Speaking during his press duties on Wednesday, the seven-time European Tour winner addressed his struggles at this week’s venue.
“Just a very different test,” Fleetwood explained. “I think the normal wind goes against, like, a lot of the flow of the holes a lot.
“So I think when the wind picks up, and you have the crosswinds, I think it makes it a difficult driving golf course. It’s not narrow at all but when the course plays that firm and with the crosswinds coming up, it’s a tough driving golf course. It’s one of those, I feel like, yeah, there’s definitely opportunities. Of course, there is.”
The Englishman continued: “But I still think it provides a really strong test as well. Not had that much success the last two years. Looking forward to the challenge again. Played it a couple times and feel well prepared. Looking forward to getting out there.”
Tommy Fleetwood in good form ahead of the HSBC Championship
Despite his apparent frustration after the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, Fleetwood’s results demonstrate that he’s in good form.
The week prior to the lucrative links event, Fleetwood finished tied for 3rd at the Spanish Open, an event which saw Ángel Hidalgo beat Jon Rahm in a playoff.
Fleetwood also impressed at the flagship BMW PGA Championship, where he finished tied for 12th and pocketed $123,000.
As is the case with Fleetwood, failure to get tournaments over the line has often proven troublesome, and this has once again proven true in 2024.
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