This article is part of our DraftKings Euro Tour series.
DP World Tour Championship, Dubai
Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Course: Earth Course, Jumeirah Golf Estates
Yardage: 7,677
Par: 72
Tournament Preview
The Race to Dubai will conclude this week with DP World Championship, Dubai. The 60-player, no-cut event will again be contested on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates. The lengthy course consists of wide fairways and large undulating greens, with bunkers throughout. Water appears on a handful of holes, including the 17th island green. Ball strikers will be key this week. Shorter hitters, as well as bombers, have had success on this long track. Winning scores are often near 20-under par. Birdie-makers will be a must. Course history will be considered along with recent and season-long form.
Key Stats to Winning at Jumeirah Golf Estates
SG: Approach The Green
Birdies
Driving Accuracy
Past Champions
2018 - Danny Willett
2017 - Jon Rahm
2016 - Matthew Fitzpatrick
2015 - Rory McIlroy
2014 - Henrik Stenson
DraftKings Picks
Jon Rahm - $11,500 (13/2)
I expect the top three names to all perform well this week. They are all arriving off wins the last time out. Rory McIlroy is a past champion at Jumeirah Golf Estates and has extra motivation thanks to recent comments by Brooks Koepka. Tommy Fleetwood won just last week, and perhaps the floodgates have been opened. My favorite is Rahm. He has dominated Rolex Series events and won this event in 2017. He has been on fire since mid-summer, with two wins and two second-place finishes.
Bernd Wiesberger - $8,600 (28/1)
Last week, Wiesberger showed again the incredible form that he has had all season, finishing T3 at Nedbank Golf Challenge. It has been an amazing year for him, winning three times after coming back from injury. He has a great opportunity to finish the season strong on a course that has yielded good results. He finished T4 at Jumeirah Golf Estates in 2016. He is leading the Race to Dubai entering the championship.
Victor Perez - $7,400 (50/1)
Perez has had a good few months. He won in September at Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and has followed that with four made cuts in a row. His last three finishes have been T16, T4 and T2 at Turkish Airlines Open. This will be his first time at DP World Championship, and I expect he will make the most of it. He is seventh on tour in SG: approach and 18th in birdies.
Benjamin Hebert - $6,100 (125/1)
Another Frenchman for my final pick. I see great value in Hebert at almost the flat minimum. Dipping this low will allow another top-tier golfer on your teams. He finished T24 last week at Nedbank and was T2 before that in Turkey. He is a good iron player and is ranked 16th on tour in Sg: approach. While he is an accurate driver, the main concern is the flat stick. If the putter does show up this week expect good results.
