Rahm's Abu Dhabi win turns Race to Dubai into open contest in Dubai

Jon Rahm has revived his hopes of a second Harry Vardon Trophy after ending a four-year wait for a non-major DP World Tour title at last week's Abu Dhabi Championship, setting up a contested finish to the season at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.

Rahm held off Tyrrell Hatton and Rory McIlroy to win the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship, according to Golf Monthly, a victory that doubled as his sixth Rolex Series title and his eleventh overall on the DP World Tour.

The Spaniard began that week 51st in the Race to Dubai standings and, by his own admission, had all but given up hope of contending for the season-long title. "I didn't think I would ever have a chance", Rahm said.

His win lifted him to sixth in the rankings, though Golf Monthly reports he still sits 1,718.34 points behind leader Eugenio Chacarra heading into the finale at Jumeirah Golf Estates' Earth Course.

The winner at Jumeirah Golf Estates will collect 2,000 points, and Golf Monthly's calculations suggest a fourth Earth Course title for Rahm could be enough to secure the trophy, provided Chacarra finishes no higher than ninth and both McIlroy and Patrick Reed finish outside the top two.

Rahm last won the Race to Dubai in 2019, and a second triumph this week would arrive at the end of a run away from the European circuit during his time with LIV Golf.

McIlroy arrives at Jumeirah Golf Estates with his own piece of history in view. Yahoo Sports reports the Northern Irishman sits 500 points behind Chacarra and can draw level with Colin Montgomerie's record of eight Race to Dubai titles.

McIlroy's build-up to the finale has followed an unusual pattern for a player chasing a record. Yahoo Sports notes he won his second successive Masters at the start of the year but has played only nine PGA Tour events outside the majors in 2026, instead teeing up 12 times on the DP World Tour, after admitting that regular tour events no longer motivate him the way they once did.

Patrick Reed and Aaron Rai are also among those with a mathematical path to catching Chacarra, according to Independent Sport, which described the closing stages of the season as shaping up for a tantalising finish.

The leaderboard in Abu Dhabi carried wider significance beyond the individual battle for the Harry Vardon Trophy. Independent Sport reported that Rahm, Hatton and McIlroy's one-two-three finish will have caught the eye of European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald, with all three central to his plans before the 2027 contest against the US at Adare Manor.

Independent Sport also placed the strength of that Abu Dhabi field in a broader context, noting that the winding down of LIV Golf means more of the game's leading players, from Europe and beyond, are now expected to compete regularly on the DP World Tour rather than elsewhere next season.

With Chacarra still holding the advantage but Rahm, McIlroy, Reed and Rai all able to overtake him at Jumeirah Golf Estates, the destination of this year's Race to Dubai will not be settled until the DP World Tour Championship concludes in Dubai.