This Week in Golf: DP World Tour Season back on the road in Australia

The 2023-24 season concluded in spectacular fashion at Jumeirah Golf Estates with Rory McIlroy clinching the DP World Tour Championship and securing a remarkable double victory.

McIlroy continues to prove himself as a player who consistently rises to the occasion, particularly in Dubai, a city where he has long thrived.

It is somewhat surprising, then, that despite his recent success, McIlroy remains in third place in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), trailing only Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele.

It looks like Scottie is there for a while at the top of the table – he has had a great year – but I get more and more confused with how the OWGR works – but that is for another time, when I have done my research.

I will always treat the OWGR as innocent until proven guilty.

The new DP World Tour season is back in action on Thursday with the BMW Australian PGA Championship played at Royal Queensland Golf Club, Brisbane.

It is the first event of the Opening Swing, with four more Global Swings to follow in Phase One, each with their own Rankings and champion.

At the end of Phase One we move into Phase Two, the Back 9, with the top 70 players on the Race to Dubai Rankings after that moving on to the DP World Tour Play-Offs. Then, at the end of the Abu Dhabi Championship, the top 50 will head to the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, where the Harry Vardon Trophy will be presented to Europe's Number One.

It is all going so fast – where do we get a breather and recharge our batteries?

A strong field dominated by the Australians will play this week, led by Cam Smith, Jason Day, Geoff Ogilvy, Marc Leishman and Min Woo Lee.

UAE Golden Visa Awardees Nico Colsaerts (Bel) and Rafa Cabrera Bello (Spain) are both playing this week and are looking for a decent start to set them up for the 2024 – 25 season.

The LPGA has their CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, Florida with a huge purse of $11 million – the only purse larger on the LPGA Tour is the US Women’s Open which was $12 million in 2024.

It is open to the top 60 players on the LPGA Tour’s Race to CME Globe with a whopping $4 million going the champion on Sunday night.

Schedule

Thursday 21st – Sunday 24th November, 2024

BMW Australian PGA Championship

Venue: Royal Queensland GC, Brisbane, Australia

Purse: $11 million