Aaron Rai defeats Tommy Fleetwood in a playoff to win the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Von Dellingshausen qualifies for Dubai, while Marcel Schneider narrowly misses out.
The first playoff of the DP World Tour season concluded with Aaron Rai edging out fellow Englishman Tommy Fleetwood at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Rai carded four birdies on the front nine and three more on the back, offsetting two bogeys to finish with a 67 and 25-under-par overall.
Fleetwood posted a bogey-free 66, highlighted by an eagle on the second hole, to match Rai’s total. However, in the playoff, Rai secured victory with a birdie while Fleetwood settled for par. It marks Rai’s second career win in the prestigious Rolex Series.
The moment Aaron Rai beat Tommy Fleetwood in the first play-off hole to claim his second Rolex Series win 💪#ADGolfChamps | #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/XVA1Wt9IqC
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 9, 2025
Rai, who hadn’t played since the BMW PGA Championship in September and started the week ranked 55th, earned 1,500 Race to Dubai points with the win. He jumped 46 spots to ninth, securing a place in the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai from November 13–16. “It’s hard to describe,” Rai said after embracing his father Amrik. “You just try to stay in the moment and in the flow. It’s difficult to put into words right now.”
Finishing one shot back at 24-under-par were Nicolai Højgaard and Rory McIlroy. McIlroy fired a sensational 62 on Sunday, including eight birdies and an eagle, but it wasn’t enough to reach the playoff. He remains firmly atop the Race to Dubai standings.
German hopes: Schneider out, von Dellingshausen through
On Yas Links, German players Marcel Schneider and Nicolai von Dellings