Next stop Abu Dhabi – The fantastic five who secured a late spot in the DP World Tour Play-Offs – Article
The agony and ecstasy of golf played out at the Genesis Championship as five players extended their seasons and secured their places at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
There was a lot to gain in the Race to Dubai rankings in collaboration with Rolex at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club. The top 70 players available secured their place in the DP World Tour play-offs at the end of the season.
When the dust settled on a hectic Sunday in South Korea, five players had made it to the magic 70 in the death throes. Here we take a look at them.
Casey Jarvis – T6 – 77>59
The South African was rewarded for his herculean effort in his first full season on the DP World Tour by securing his place in the final two events of the season. He traveled to Japan for his 33rd start of the season and 10th in 11 weeks, but showed little sign of fatigue as his first 67 points laid the foundation for a result that took him closer to the top 50 and the DP World Tour Championship than to the top 70. A Challenge Tour graduate, he even decided to play at this circuit in his home country during a down week of the DP World Tour in February, and should he make it to Jumeirah Golf Estates, he would have over the course of the Season 36 group events played on the European Tour. In Incheon, he said he was looking forward to returning to South Africa on Monday, regardless of the result, and would now rest for a few days before returning to action.
Francesco Laporta – T6 – 84>60
The Italian, another Challenge Tour graduate, came well at the right time considering he was fighting to save his card when he missed the cut at the Barracuda Championship in July. Ten events, two top ten finishes, just one missed cut (by a single shot) and 60 increased rankings later, and he’s on his way to Yas Links. He only broke 70 once in Korea, but his second round of 65 was the lowest of the day, and on the final day he led by one point after four birdies in ten holes before falling behind with three bogeys.
Brandon Stone – T9 – 73>64
Stone, the third Challenge Tour graduate on our list, is another player who has found his form at the right time after missing eight of his first ten cuts. A three-time winner and Rolex Series champion, Stone secured a fourth-place finish in the season’s top ten at the FedEx Open de France before finishing 17th at the Estrella Damm NA Andalucía Masters to stay in contention. A 66th place in the third round in Incheon was the highlight of his week as he gained 22 places in three weeks at the Race to Dubai and is now chasing his first appearance at the season finale in four years.
Nicolai Højgaard – T9 – 78>67
Højgaard arguably struggled the most in the play-off bubble last week, as he is a man with a title to defend in Dubai. He’ll need another good week in Abu Dhabi to crack the top 50 and make it to the Earth Course, but he’s kept himself very much alive with three final top-ten finishes from his seven back-9 appearances . In Korea he came in at just the right moment with a 66 and he was happy with his week. “I really wanted to get to the play-offs. “Today I played a really good round under pressure and I’m just really happy with it,” he said.
Gavin Green – T14 – 74>69
The Malaysian started his season with a top-10 finish at the Joburg Open and when he secured a top-five spot in India he looked well on his way to a play-off spot. But since then he hasn’t really challenged himself, despite numerous cuts, and has been left out again. He was never in contention for a victory in Korea and looked like he would come up short in his eighth appearance on the back 9, after three rounds of 70 holes, sitting at even par after 13 holes in round four . He then birdied four of his last five birdies to secure his place in the top 70 by less than ten points.
