Jon Rahm secured a two-stroke victory at the Abu Dhabi Championship on Sunday, closing with a five-under-par 67 to finish at 23 under and edge England’s Tyrrell Hatton. The win marked Rahm’s first DP World Tour title in four years and his first since announcing his departure from LIV Golf. Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy finished two shots further back in third at 19 under.
Rahm, playing his first tournament since the birth of his fourth child last month, carded six birdies and one bogey in the final round. He began the day with a one-shot lead after a third-round 66 and held off a chasing pack that included Hatton, McIlroy and Italy’s Francesco Laporta.
“It means a lot. It’s been quite a while to play well in the DP World Tour,” Rahm said. He described his back nine as nearly flawless apart from a dropped shot on the 17th, adding that the victory was special given recent challenges and the new addition to his family.
Rahm’s previous DP World Tour appearance ended with a last-place finish at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, making the turnaround particularly satisfying. He joked about going from last to first.
Hatton’s final-round 68 featured four birdies and 14 pars. He briefly reduced the deficit to one shot on the 15th, but Rahm responded with a birdie moments later after a precise six-iron approach set up a three-foot putt. Hatton’s 24-foot birdie attempt on the 17th came up inches short, and Rahm then holed his par putt from under five feet.
McIlroy, who received a two-shot penalty in his first round, finished with a three-under 69. The third-place result lifted him to second in the Race to Dubai standings, leapfrogging American Patrick Reed and trailing only Spain’s Eugenio Chacarra as he seeks a record-equalling eighth season-long title. Chacarra finished the tournament at 11 under in a tie for 22nd, while Reed ended at four under.
Laporta, chasing his first DP World Tour win, made three birdies on the front nine to turn level with Rahm. He then dropped four shots in two holes to fall out of contention, finishing fourth at 17 under, six shots behind the winner. Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger and Spain’s Angel Ayora and David Puig shared fifth at 16 under.
Rahm’s victory keeps him in the hunt for the Race to Dubai title should he be able to go back-to-back in next week’s season finale in Dubai. The result also marked his sixth Rolex Series event win.
