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DP World Tour Preview: Who Will Win the DP World Tour Championship? | William Hill
As the DP World Tour season draws to close, Rory McIlroy already has his name on the Race to Dubai crown, but we look elsewhere for this week’s picks to win the DP World Tour Championship.
Below, we have selected two standout picks for this week’s tournament in Dubai, with the longer hitters set for a field day on Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Earth Course.
Tyrrell Hatton 12/1
Tyrrell Hatton will be heading out to Dubai in high spirits on his first return to action since he played a key part in Europe’s Ryder Cup victory back at the start of October. Hatton was certainly on form in Rome as he scored 3.5/4 points available to him on his way to victory.
Prior to that, Hatton was in fine form on the DP World Tour, having finished T2 in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth on his last outing. The vast 7,267-yard course in Surrey played right into Hatton’s hands and Jumeirah’s Earth Course could provide another favourable challenge for the Englishman.
Hatton isn’t renowned as one of the longest hitters on tour but ranking 45th for his driving distance shows that he is certainly not lacking in yardage off the tee. He hits long enough to get from tee to green efficiently and ranks 11th in the world in that respect, whilst he is a specialist with the flatstick – his stokes gained putting only bettered by six players this season.
Hatton has never won at the Earth Course but that is no reason to go against him as he has recorded two second placed finishes there at the DP World Tour Championships with the first coming in 2016, and the second as recently as last year.
The Englishman is currently joint-fourth in the market and in with every chance of bettering his two second place finishes. Hatton is no stranger to a place here and looks set to go well after over a month’s rest, so with six places on offer, at 12/1 he looks a good value each-way pick who has a strong chance at securing top spot here.
Min Woo Lee 16/1
With the Earth Course measuring a whopping 7,708 yards, it would be rude not to mention Min Woo Lee, who is regarded as one of the best long hitters in the world at the moment.
The 25-year-old Australian has burst onto the scene in recent years, becoming a sensation with the fans via his social media presence. But he is not just an entertainer, he is one of the hottest prospects in world golf at the moment and he hits the ball further than most.
Lee’s average driving distance on the DP World Tour this year measures just over 316 yards, the eighth furthest of any player. He isn’t just a long hitter and his consistency in other areas of his game has seen significant improvement this season, leading to him ranking eighth in the world for average strokes per round, which for Lee totals just under 70.
One of his most notable performances came back in January when he finished T2 at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and he will be hoping to carry that form in the Middle East through to Jumeirah.
At 16/1 Lee sits joint-seventh in the market and with four T6 or better finishes to his name this season, he looks good value to finish in the top six places, and certainly can’t be counted out of topping the leaderboard.
