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Rory McIlroy claimed some early bragging rights over Lee Westwood yesterday when he moved to the top of the standings in the Race to Dubai with only one tournament left to play — this week’s lucrative Dubai World Championship.
McIlroy had started the Hong Kong Open trailing Westwood, the leader, by a little over €52,000 (about £46,400). But after finishing runner-up to Grégory Bourdy, of France, with a blistering final round of 64 at Fanling, the Northern Irishman finds himself €128,000 ahead of his English rival, who finished outside the top 50.
With $1.25 million (about £747,700) on offer to the winner in Dubai, the race to finish as Europe’s No 1 is far from over. But while it would be mathematically possible for Ian Poulter, in ninth position, to claim top spot, the winner of the European Tour’s inaugural Race to Dubai is likely to come from the leading four of McIlroy, Westwood, Martin Kaymer and Ross Fisher. Paul Casey, in fifth position, has pulled out with a recurrence of a rib injury.
For two weeks running, McIlroy has shown his class on the final day. At the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai a week earlier, he chased the leaders to the line with a round of 63 and in Hong Kong he did the same after beginning the day five shots adrift of the eventual winner. However, after taking three putts at his penultimate hole, the 20-year-old had to settle for his second consecutive runners-up finish at the Hong Kong Golf Club, ending the day two shots behind Bourdy, on 17 under par.
In Lake Buena Vista, Florida, Justin Rose had a final round of 68 yesterday to finish in a tie for fourth at the Children’s Miracle Network Classic. The Englishman, who had shared the lead after the third round, finished on 17 under par, one shot behind the winner, Stephen Ames, the Canadian, who beat George McNeill and Justin Leonard, the Americans, in a play-off.
In Melbourne, Tiger Woods proved good value for the $3 million fee he received for playing in the Australian Masters. Beginning the day sharing the lead with Greg Chalmers and James Nitties, Woods had a final round of 68 at the Kingston Heath for a 14-under-par total of 274 and victory by two shots over Chalmers.
•Michelle Wie secured her first LPGA title after winning the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in Guadalajara, Mexico, by two strokes over Paula Creamer, a fellow American. Wie’s three-under-par 69 enabled her to finish on 13 under par after starting the day tied for the lead with Christie Kerr on ten under. Great things have been expected of Wie, 20, since she first played an LPGA event when she was 12.
The front runners
1, Rory McIlroy (GB) € 2,538,449; 2, Lee Westwood (GB) € 2,410,277; 3, Martin Kaymer (Ger) € 2,332,544; 4, Ross Fisher (GB) € 2,105,047; 5, Paul Casey (GB) € 2,014,063; 6, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) € 1,679,489; 7, Oliver Wilson (GB) € 1,668,252; 8, Simon Dyson (GB) € 1,525,157; 9, Ian Poulter (GB) € 1,434,554; 10, Ernie Els (SA) € 1,375,704; 11, Soren Kjeldsen (Den) € 1,339,645; 12, Francesco Molinari (It) € 1,327,863; 13, Sergio García (Sp) € 1,321,872; 14, Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño (Sp) € 1,175,979; 15, Peter Hanson (Swe) € 1,173,801.
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