Rory McIlroy had a tearful end to what he described as “absolutely” the most emotionally draining year he has ever had, as he signed off 2024 with a triumphant Dubai double.
The Northern Irishman held off the challenge of Rasmus Hojgaard to win the DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
That was the exclamation mark on his resounding success in the Race to Dubai. It was his third Harry Vardon Trophy in a row, and his sixth in all.
When he was reminded, in a flash interview straight after holing the putt that won the tournament, that had tied the number of order of merit wins Seve Ballesteros had, McIlroy had to wipe away tears.
Ballesteros, the late Spanish great, had been the favourite player of McIlroy’s dad, and is still the driving force behind the European Ryder Cup side of which McIlroy has been a mainstay for so long.
“Personally, for me, it is a huge achievement,” McIlroy said.
“All week, it has been building and building. After the first round, I played well and Thriston [Lawrence, the only challenger left to McIlroy in the Race to Dubai standings] was a little bit behind.
“It felt like a little bit of a foregone conclusion, but it never really hits you until it actually happens.
“I just think about what Seve means to the game, to this tour, and to the European Ryder Cup team. We sit in the locker room at the Ryder Cup and the place is just filled with Seve quotes.
“We had a changing room last year in Italy with the last shirt he ever wore when he played the Ryder Cup at Oakhill in ’95.”
McIlroy ended up winning by two strokes at the Earth Course, but had required a fine finish to edge out Hojgaard, as well as stave off the nerves that have betrayed him a number of times during close finishes this season.
“I think it was that combined with the fact I have had so many close calls this year, and I certainly didn’t make it easy for myself on the back nine,” McIlroy said.
“The combination of the Seve thing and the fact I got over the line for the first time in what has felt like a long time, the emotion of it all hit me.
“This is a big day for me to end 2024 like this. It means a lot, and I am looking forward to 2025.”
While he professed himself satisfied with what he has achieved this season, he acknowledged that his campaign might be defined by the wins he didn’t get as much as the ones he did.
Most recently, he lost out in a play-off at the BMW PGA Championship, and before that had lost by a stroke to Hojgaard at the Amgen Irish Open.
His most significant narrow loss was when Bryson DeChambeau stole the US Open from him when it was within McIlroy’s grasp.
The world No 3 also referenced the fact he has had a tough time away from the course. Before signing his card after his final-round 69 at JGE, he kissed his daughter Poppy and wife Erica, and said he looked forward to celebrating this win with them.
“This was an incredibly meaningful day for me to get over the line and win my last tournament of the season,” McIlroy said.
“It’s been quite the year. But I’m super happy with where I am in my career and in my life, and I feel like everything’s worked out the way it was supposed to.”
Of his three individual wins this year, two have come in Dubai. He started out the season with a last-hole loss to Tommy Fleetwood at the Dubai Invitational, then defended his Desert Classic title at Emirates Golf Club.
To bookend the campaign, he will be taking away two trophies from the city this time. It is the third time he has won both the Tour Championship and the Race to Dubai.
“I have never been offered [UAE citizenship] but if I were to be offered, I probably would take it, yeah,” McIlroy said of the city he once called home.
“I lived here for four years. I was a resident. I love this part of the world. I always have. I was lucky enough to receive an invite to the Dubai Desert Classic in 2006 as an amateur, and I've been coming back to this region every year since.
“It’s been 18 pretty cool years. There have been a lot of fond memories along the way, and as long as this region continues to be an important part of the world of golf, I'll keep coming back.
“I love coming back here, and I have a lot of friends, and I try to make it a point to come back as much as I can.”
If you go
Flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.
The stay
Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.
Dubai World Cup factbox
Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)
Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)
Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)
Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)
Wenger's Arsenal reign in numbers
1,228 - games at the helm, ahead of Sunday's Premier League fixture against West Ham United.
704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
7 - FA Cup triumphs, with three of those having come the last four seasons.
151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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