Telfer's Thoughts 10.11.25

For the third time, in almost as many weeks, Kiwi golfer Daniel Hillier would have been satisfied to see his name at the top of the leaderboard with just a handful of holes left to play on three different recent DP World Tour events. So it was again last Sunday in Abu Dhabi at the US$9 million Abu Dhabi Championship.

He started the 4th round in 5th spot, just a couple of shots off the lead, but a brilliant start to his 4th round saw him birdie 4 of his first 5 holes. A further 3 back-to-back birdies on holes 9, 10 and 11 then had him 7 under for his round. At that point he was sitting on top of the leaderboard, clear of the entire field by one shot. Chasing him were the likes of Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood and Tyrell Hatton, three of the stars of the successful European Ryder Cup team from a month or so back.

Hillier was also well aware of the rewards that awaited him were he to win here in the desert. He mentioned before the tournament started that if he were to capture this title, it would almost certainly guarantee him a full playing card next year on the USPGA Tour, following the exact same route Ryan Fox took a couple of years back when he elevated himself from the DP World Tour to the US Tour.

Unfortunately for Daniel he stumbled a little on the way home making double bogey on the 15 th and a bogey on 18. He also managed to squeeze another birdie out of his round on 16, so all up this was hardly a major meltdown. But when you have the likes of Fleetwood and McIlroy, both ranked in the world’s top 5, smelling blood, they pounce. McIlroy racked up an amazing 10 birdies during his final round, finishing with a 10 under par 62 and edged just ahead of Hillier. Meanwhile Fleetwood got himself into a play-off with fellow Englishman 30-year-old Aaron Rai, the overnight leader who shut out Fleetwood on the first hole of sudden death with a birdie to Fleetwood’s par.

For Hillier, well he didn’t exactly leave the desert distraught. He earned around NZ$600,000 for his work. With rounds of 66, 68, 65 and 67 he knows his game is in great shape as he heads to Dubai for the DP World Tour finale, where an even bigger pay cheque awaits him. And if he can nail another top 3 position or higher, he may yet grab a playing card for the USA next year. Also in the field of 50 for the Dubai finale is Kazuma Kobori who played in Abu Dhabi, finishing in a tie for 41st place, which is also exactly the position he happens to occupy on the Road to Dubai rankings. That means by finishing inside the top 50 on the year-long points table, he will join the other 49 golfers in the top 50 to contest the Championship finale. In simple terms, that means a small field but big, big money - US$10 million split among the 50 players.

It’s nothing short of remarkable that a young Kiwi golfer in his rookie year on the world’s second richest tour qualifies for this big final.