When Paul Waring arrived at Yas Links earlier this week, he was well aware of the pressure from rivals aiming to secure a spot in next week’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship.
Yet by Sunday evening, the Dubai-based Englishman no longer needed to glance over his shoulder at the Race to Dubai top-50 cutoff for the season-ending event.
With the biggest win of his career at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, the 39-year-old surged up the standings from 47th to fifth place, securing his place not only in the season finale, but also on the PGA Tour next season.
Waring had seized control of the tournament with a course-record 61 on Friday, building a five-shot lead at the halfway mark. But after a 73 on Saturday, his cushion was trimmed to just one shot.
Although he admitted to feeling jittery during the third round, he showed remarkable composure in Sunday’s final round, delivering a flawless 66 to hold off a star-studded chasing pack that included Shane Lowry, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton and World No.3 Rory McIlroy.
For much of the day, it looked as though one of the ‘bigger’ names might catch Waring, as both Hatton and McIlroy turned up the pressure with impressive 64s.
However, Waring responded brilliantly, making a clutch birdie on the 17th after perfectly reading a challenging 40-foot left-to-right putt that broke up the slope, putting him one shot ahead of Hatton’s 22-under clubhouse target.
He then capped off his triumph with another birdie on the 18th to get to 24 under, securing his first Rolex Series title and just his second DP World Tour victory after his 2018 win at the Nordea Masters.
“It's my second win, I've been knocking on the door a few times,” said Waring immediately after his victory.
“I had a few seconds. I've been in and around a few times. To get over the line again is fantastic, and to control it the way I have as well, especially today. I thought I might have let it slip yesterday.
“But to keep a lead yesterday the way I was playing, I knew I wouldn't have two days in a row playing like that, and today I always felt like I had another gear that I needed. I was hitting into the middle of a lot of greens. Not taking too much on.
“My caddie wasn't really in my ear about the leaderboard, but I knew he was looking at it. I wasn't. He was just kind of managing me on the way around. He was absolutely fantastic today. Alex was great.”
Hatton’s closing 64 secured him solo second, while Matt Wallace, Thorbjorn Olesen, and Rory McIlroy shared third at 21-under.
For McIlroy, it was yet another story of near-misses at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship - his third-place finish marked the ninth time he’s landed in the top three without clinching victory.
The tournament might have turned out differently for the four-time Major champion if not for disappointing finishes on Friday and Saturday. On day two, a triple bogey on the 17th halted his charge up the leaderboard, while on Saturday, the 18th proved costly.
After driving into the water, McIlroy found a bunker with his fourth shot and closed with a double-bogey seven.
Had he made par on those two holes, McIlroy would have finished at 26-under, two strokes clear of Waring.
“The two finishes on Friday and Saturday obviously left me with some work to do,” McIlroy reflected after his round. “If I come up one short, I'll certainly regret those finishes.”
Dubai-based Tommy Fleetwood shared sixth place on 20-under with Ugo Coussaud, Thriston Lawrence and Antoine Rozner.
Focus now turns to next week’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship, where the top 50 golfers on the Race to Dubai Rankings will battle it out at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
