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65-879: The DP World Tour Championship is a golf tournament on the European Tour and is the climax of the Race to Dubai . It is contested on the Greg Norman-designed Earth course at the Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai , United Arab Emirates . The title sponsor is DP World , based in Dubai. The tournament was first held in 2009 when the Order of Merit was replaced by the Race to Dubai. It is contested by

130-725: A 60% interest in Ryder Cup Europe, with each of its junior partners holding 20%. In June 2023, it was announced that the PGA Tour , LIV Golf and the European Tour would merge under a single organisation. Professional golf began in Europe, specifically in Scotland. The first professionals were clubmakers and greenkeepers who also taught golf to the wealthy men who could afford to play the game (early handmade equipment

195-444: A bonus. The bonus pool was increased to $ 5 million in 2014 with the top 15 players earning part of the pool. 2019 saw further changes: in 2018 the top 10 finishers on the Race to Dubai shared the bonus pool of $ 5 million, but as of 2019 the sum was split between only the leading five finishers. Whoever topped the standings received an additional $ 2 million compared with the $ 1.25 million won by Francesco Molinari in 2018. In addition,

260-455: A decade after winning bidding, and guaranteed the purses for those tour events. Since 2000, with the exception of 2012, the season has actually started late in the previous calendar year, but the seasons are still named by calendar year, rather than for example 2005–06, which would reflect the actual span of play. All of the events up until late March take place outside Europe, with most of these being co-sanctioned with other tours. From then on,

325-632: A formal organised tour, which later became known as the PGA Tour , had been administered by the PGA of America since the 1930s. However even into the 1960s and 1970s, the majority of tournaments in Europe were still organised separately by the host golf club or association, or a commercial promoter. In 1972 The Professional Golfers' Association created an integrated "European tour" with the inclusion of eight major tournaments in Continental Europe on their Order of Merit schedule. These tournaments were

390-489: A great deal of difference to the end-of-season rankings. The following year, in 1999, the World Golf Championships were established with the three individual tournaments, also offering substantially more prize money than most European events, added to the European Tour schedule. Since the minimum number of events that a player must play to retain membership of the European Tour was eleven, the addition of

455-519: A points system and money earned. Each year the PGA would determine which tournaments were to be included for the Order of Merit. By the post- World War II period prize money was becoming more significant, with sponsors being attracted by the introduction of television coverage, and as such it was becoming more feasible for professional golfers to make a living by playing alone. In the United States

520-522: A share. This system continued until 1998, after which renewed emphasis was placed on maximising prize money in individual tournaments. In 1989, the tour visited Asia for the first time for the Dubai Desert Classic . By 1990, there were 38 events on the schedule, including 37 in Europe, and the start of the season had moved up to February. A first visit to East Asia for the Tour occurred at

585-563: A tournament committee of 14 current players. The Chairman of the Board is Eric Nicoli , who replaced David Williams in 2023. The chairman of the tournament committee is David Howell . The PGA European Tour is the lead partner in Ryder Cup Europe, a joint venture also including the PGA of Great Britain and Ireland and PGA of Europe that operates the Ryder Cup Matches in cooperation with the PGA of America . The PGA European Tour has

650-586: Is a series of tournaments with higher prize funds than regular tour events and included the three Final Series tournaments. In 2022, there are five Rolex Series tournaments, three of which are in the United Arab Emirates. 25°01′19″N 55°11′56″E  /  25.022°N 55.199°E  / 25.022; 55.199 European Tour The European Tour , currently titled as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons, and legally

715-731: Is best for golf as more money can be made there than elsewhere. This criticism has been muted since the 2009 elevation of the HSBC Champions, held in China , to full WGC status. In addition, the WGC-Mexico Championship in 2017 marked the move of half the WGC events to outside the United States. At the end of the 2021 season, the number of WGC events was reduced to two, the Match Play and the HSBC Champions. The HSBC Champions

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780-530: Is substantially higher. There is also much more variation in prize funds between tournaments on the European Tour than on the PGA Tour. Even though the prize funds of many European Tour events have increased rapidly since the late 1990s, especially with the introduction of the Race to Dubai and the Rolex Series , on occasion the European Tour has failed to attract as many leading players to its events as in

845-702: The DP World Tour Championship, Dubai was cut to the top 50 golfers on the Race to Dubai list, the prize fund was kept at $ 8 million but the winner's share was increased to $ 3 million. This was designed to increase interest and player participation in the event. In November 2021, the Race to Dubai was renamed the DP World Tour Rankings in line with the tour being retitled as the DP World Tour. However, in November 2022,

910-897: The French Open , which was first included in 1970; the Italian , Spanish , German and Swiss Opens, which were included in 1971; and the Dutch Open , the Madrid Open and the Lancia d'Oro tournament, which were included for the first time. As such the 1972 season is now officially recognised as the first season of the PGA European Tour. For several years, the British PGA and continental circuits continued to run separately, each with their own Order of Merit. Following

975-565: The HSBC Champions , previously a European Tour event co-sanctioned by three other tours, to World Golf Championships status. The minimum increased to 13 in 2011, but beginning in 2013 team events such as the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup were allowed to count towards the minimum. In 2016 the 13-event minimum was changed to five events, not counting the four majors and four WGCs; while this change did not affect players eligible for all

1040-792: The PGA European Tour or the European Tour Group , is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe . The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged 50 or older) and the developmental Challenge Tour ; the second tier of men's professional golf in Europe. The tour's headquarters are at the Wentworth Club in Virginia Water , Surrey , England. The European Tour

1105-703: The PGA Tour of Australasia in 1996, and most extensively to the Asian Tour . In 1998, the European Tour added the three U.S. majors – the Masters Tournament , the PGA Championship and the U.S. Open – to its official schedule. The leading European Tour players had all been competing in them for many years, but now their prize money counted towards the Order of Merit (a year later for the Masters Tournament), which sometimes made

1170-468: The United States in most of the years, and one or two were staged elsewhere. Starting in 2007, all three of the individual World Golf Championships events were played in the United States, which attracted criticism from some golfers, including Tiger Woods and Ernie Els , and in the media outside the United States. PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem responded by insisting that playing in the U.S

1235-701: The Vardon Trophy awarded by the PGA of America . The table below shows the top 10 career money leaders on the European Tour. Due to increases in prize money over the years, it is dominated by current players. The figures are not the players' complete career earnings as most of them have earned millions more on other tours (especially the PGA Tour) or from non-tour events. In addition, elite golfers often earn several times as much from endorsements and golf-related business interests as they do from prize money. As of 10 December 2023. The European Tour Golfer of

1300-543: The 1992 Johnnie Walker Classic in Bangkok. This has since proven to be one of the most notable initiatives in the history of the tour, as East Asia is becoming almost its second home. Shortly afterwards the tour also made its debut in the former Soviet Bloc at the 1994 Czech Open , but much less has come of this development as participation in golf in the former Soviet region remains low and sponsors there are unable to compete financially with their Western European rivals for

1365-417: The European Tour loses money in non-Ryder Cup years, makes a tidy profit in years the event is played in the United States (where the PGA of America, not the PGA Tour, owns the event and reaps the majority of the income), and then hits the lottery in years the tournament is staged in Europe. Earlier this year, Golfweek reported that the European Tour made more than 14 million pounds in pre-tax profit in 2010,

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1430-828: The Final Series, a four tournament end of season series of tournaments consisting of the Turkish Airlines Open , WGC-HSBC Champions , BMW Masters , and culminating in the DP World Tour Championship. In 2016 the series was reduced to three tournaments with the removal of the WGC-HSBC Champions and BMW Masters, and the addition of the Nedbank Golf Challenge . In 2017 the Rolex Series was launched, which

1495-610: The Hong Kong Open. The winner of the Race to Dubai also receives a ten-year European Tour exemption, while the winner of the Dubai World Championship receives a five-year exemption. The reduction in prize money, announced in September 2009, was due to the global economic downturn . In 2012, the bonus pool was reduced to $ 3.75 million with the winner getting $ 1 million and only the top 10 golfers getting

1560-414: The PGA Tour as a second step. When Continental Europe produced its first global golf stars in the 1970s, such as Seve Ballesteros , and especially when Europe began to notch wins over the United States in the Ryder Cup in the mid-1980s, there was widespread optimism about the future standing of the European Tour relative to the PGA Tour. This has ebbed away as leading players continued to base themselves in

1625-551: The PGA Tour to contest at the Dubai World Tour Championship, but only one American has won the title; Collin Morikawa in 2021. Originally the tournament was to have a record prize fund of US$ 10,000,000, of which the winner's share would be US$ 1,666,660, however in September 2009 it was announced that there would be a 25% reduction in both the overall prize fund and the winners cheque. The prize fund

1690-653: The PGA Tour. Between 2000 and 2006, the men's World Cup was accorded WGC status. The WGC Champions , first held in 2005, was awarded World Golf Championships status starting with the 2009 edition, becoming the fourth WGC tournament on the worldwide calendar. In April 2011, the Sunshine Tour announced that it would host a fifth WGC event. The event, to be known as the Tournament of Hope , was to be linked to awareness of poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa. In early 2012 it

1755-477: The United States and several major European countries, such as Germany and Italy, have not regularly produced high-ranked golfers, as was formerly anticipated. Nonetheless, the number of European countries which have produced winners on the European Tour and PGA Tour has increased, with notable golfing depth developing in the Scandinavian countries. However, since the late-1990s more young golfers from around

1820-804: The WGC Invitational is the direct successor of the World Series of Golf , which began in 1976 and the WGC Match Play is a direct successor to the Andersen Consulting World Championship of Golf which began in 1995. The WGC Championship originally traveled to different venues around the world. After 2006 it found a home at Doral Resort in Florida superseding the Doral Open , a long-standing event on

1885-531: The WGCs ranked below the major championships and above most other competitions, although The Players Championship , promoted by the PGA Tour as the "fifth major", may also claim such status. Despite the name, the World Golf Championships did not claim to crown a recognised 'world champion'. The World Golf Championships came to an end as the PGA Tour announced the 2023 WGC Match Play would be

1950-568: The Year was an award handed by a panel comprising members of the Association of Golf Writers and commentators from television and radio. The award was created in 1985 and lasted until 2020, when it merged with the Players' Player of the Year award in 2021. The European Tour Players' Player of the Year was inaugurated in 2008, with the winner being determined by a vote of tour members. In 2017

2015-476: The Year was inaugurated in 2013 and is awarded to the highest ranked player in the Race to Dubai who graduated from the Challenge Tour in the previous season. Since the tour's formation in 1972, there have been five Chief Executives. They are as follows: World Golf Championships The WGC tournaments offered comparable prize money to the major championships . In the pantheon of golf events,

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2080-829: The agreement, the PGA Tour acquired a 15% stake in European Tour Productions, the Scottish Open gained a new title sponsor and became co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour, and two regular PGA Tour tournaments also became co-sanctioned by the European Tour: the Barbasol Championship and the Barracuda Championship . There was also a new sponsor and increased prize fund for the Irish Open . In June 2022, in response to

2145-669: The award was renamed as the Seve Ballesteros Award in honour of the legendary Spanish golfer . From 2021 onwards, the Seve Ballesteros Award merged with the Golfer of the Year award, creating one singular honour voted for by the players. The Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year award is named after the English three-time Open Champion Sir Henry Cotton . Originally chosen by Henry Cotton himself,

2210-458: The bonus pool was cut in half to US$ 3,750,000 and reduced to the top 10 golfers, with the winner getting US$ 1,000,000. The 2013 DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates delivered a US$ 44 million gross economic benefit to Dubai, according to independent research commissioned by tournament organisers, The European Tour as stated in Vision magazine. In 2013 the European Tour introduced

2275-614: The emergence of LIV Golf , the tours announced that the PGA Tour were increasing their stake to 40% and further changes to the tour, including increased prize funds and leading players in the DP World Tour Rankings gaining PGA Tour cards for the following season. The European Tour is considered the second most important tour in men's golf, behind the United States–based PGA Tour , but retains significantly higher standing than other leading golf tours around

2340-770: The example set in the United States, and having been threatened with a breakaway, in 1975 the PGA agreed to amend their constitution giving the tournament side more autonomy with the formation of the Tournament Players Division . In 1977 the Tournament Players Division joined with the Continental Tournament Players Association to become the European Tournament Players Division , and the following year it

2405-431: The following month, both through sponsor's exemptions on the main European Tour and on the developmental Challenge Tour. It is a route that has been successfully followed, most notably by multiple major winner Brooks Koepka . It has been claimed that the finances of the European Tour depend heavily on the Ryder Cup. Days before the start of the 2014 Ryder Cup , American golf journalist Bob Harig noted, In simple terms,

2470-463: The highest for any professional golf tournament. Winners generally receive 70 to 78 Official World Golf Rankings points, the most awarded for any tournament apart from the major championships, which carry 100 points, and The Players Championship , which is allocated 80. Tiger Woods has dominated these tournaments, winning 16 of the first 32 individual (non-World Cup) events and winning at least one event each year from 1999 to 2009. From 2000 to 2006

2535-503: The last WGC tournament. The COVID-19 pandemic severely hampered the WGCs, as several tournaments were moved and the WGC-HSBC Champions in China was never played again once the pandemic began. As the PGA Tour's conflict with LIV Golf began, the PGA Tour pursued an "elevated status" for some existing events which have some similarities to WGC events (smaller fields, no cut, and higher prize money). The WGC Championship, WGC Match Play and WGC Invitational events all began in 1999, although

2600-406: The last time the Ryder Cup was staged in Europe. A year later, when there was no Ryder Cup, it lost more than 2.2 million pounds. Harig also added that the PGA European Tour extracts significant concessions from Ryder Cup venues. The owners of the 2006 and 2010 venues (respectively Sir Michael Smurfit and Sir Terry Matthews ) committed to hosting European Tour events at their venues for more than

2665-582: The leading 50 players in the DP World Tour Rankings at the start of the tournament. It is the replacement for the  Volvo Masters , which was a similar event for the leading 60 money winners on the Order of Merit. Past winners include Matt Fitzpatrick , Rory McIlroy , Jon Rahm and Henrik Stenson . As of the end of the 2024 season, Rahm and McIlroy share the record for most wins, with three in total, followed by Fitzpatrick and Stenson, with two wins each. The overlap between European Tour and PGA Tour events allows some American golfers who compete principally in

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2730-405: The limited number of slots available on the main tour each summer. However, the second-tier Challenge Tour has visited Central and Eastern Europe somewhat more frequently. In 1995, the European Tour began a policy of co-sanctioning tournaments with other PGA Tours , by endorsing the South African PGA Championship on the Southern African Tour (now the Sunshine Tour ). This policy was extended to

2795-401: The majors and WGCs meant that players could potentially become members, or retain membership, of the tour by playing just four other events. Players such as Ernie Els and Retief Goosen have taken advantage of this to play the PGA and European Tours concurrently. For the 2009 season, the minimum number of events required for members was increased to twelve; this coincided with the elevation of

2860-424: The majors and WGCs, it made it easier for players not eligible for these to retain European Tour membership while playing a full PGA Tour schedule. The minimum was reduced from five to four in 2018. In November 2021, the tour was retitled as the DP World Tour as part of a sponsorship agreement with Dubai-based DP World . In November 2020, the tour entered into a "strategic alliance" with the PGA Tour. As part of

2925-413: The men's golf World Cup , a tournament for teams of two players representing their country, was a World Golf Championship event, although it was not an official money event on any tour. Beginning in 2007 it is no longer part of the World Golf Championships, but it is still played, and is currently known as the Mission Hills World Cup . Also from 2000 to 2006, two or three of the four events were staged in

2990-425: The most lucrative of them taking place in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, France and Spain. The PGA European Tour is a golfer-controlled organisation whose primary purpose is to maximise the income of tournament golfers . It is a company limited by guarantee and is run by a professional staff but controlled by its playing members via a board of directors composed of 12 elected past and present tour players and

3055-423: The overall pattern from one year to the next. Occasionally tournaments change venue, and quite often change name, particularly when they get a new sponsor, but the principal events have fixed and traditional places in the schedule, and this determines the rhythm of the season. In 2009, the Order of Merit was replaced by the Race to Dubai, with a bonus pool of US$ 7.5 million (originally $ 10 million) distributed among

3120-459: The past, with even some of the top European players staying away. For many players, the European Tour is seen as a stepping-stone to the PGA Tour. During the late twentieth century, the European Tour was traditionally the first overseas move for outstanding players from non-European countries, particularly in the Commonwealth , long a major source for elite golfers, such as Greg Norman , Nick Price and Ernie Els . These players tended to move to

3185-483: The season stretched into November for the first time. In 1984, the PGA European Tour became independent of The Professional Golfers' Association. The following year, the tour became "all-exempt" with the end of pre-qualifying for tournaments. The European Tour has always been sensitive to the risk that its best players will leave to play on the PGA Tour for many reasons. The PGA Tour usually offers higher purses and European players want to increase their chances of glory in

3250-413: The three majors played in the U.S. by playing on more U.S.-style courses to acclimate themselves. In an attempt to counter this phenomenon, the European Tour introduced the "Volvo Bonus Pool" in 1988. This was extra prize money which was distributed at the end of the season to the most successful players of the year—but only golfers who had played in a high number of the European Tour's events could receive

3315-409: The time the publicity spoke of a "World Tour" which might develop on the basis of the World Championships and the majors. The "World Tour" concept seems to have been dropped, but the four events usually attract almost all of the elite players who are eligible to compete and they rank among the most prestigious and high-profile events outside of the majors. The prize money on offer is very close to being

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3380-422: The top 15 players at the end of the season, with the winner taking $ 1.5 million (originally $ 2 million). The new name reflected the addition of a new season ending tournament, the Dubai World Championship , held at the end of November in Dubai. The tournament also had a $ 7.5 million prize fund (originally $ 10 million), and was contested by the leading 60 players in the race following the season's penultimate event,

3445-416: The tour announced that the Rankings would be reverted to the Race to Dubai, starting from the 2023 season. For the 2017 season, the European Tour launched the Rolex Series, a series of events with higher prize funds than regular tour events. The series began with eight events, each with a minimum prize fund of $ 7 million. The European Tour's money list was known as the "Order of Merit" until 2009, when it

3510-459: The tour plays mainly in Europe, and the events in its home continent generally have higher prize money than those held elsewhere, excluding the major championships, which were added to the tour schedule in 1998; three individual World Golf Championships events, added the following year, most of which take place in the United States; and the HSBC Champions, elevated to World Golf Championships status in 2009. There are generally only minor variations in

3575-434: The winner was later selected by a panel consisting of the PGA European Tour, The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews and the Association of Golf Writers. It is currently given to the rookie who places highest in the Race to Dubai . The award was first presented in 1960, and thus predates the official start of the tour in 1972. There have been five years when no award was made. The European Challenge Tour Graduate of

3640-564: The world are starting their careers directly in the United States, often having attended college as amateurs, usually with golf scholarships , before turning professional. Conversely, some young American players have sought to kick-start their professional careers in Europe, having failed to qualify for either PGA Tour or its development tour. For example, former world number one amateur , Peter Uihlein , announced in December 2011 that he would not return for his final semester at Oklahoma State University and would begin professional play in Europe

3705-399: The world. This status is reflected by the minimum world ranking points available in each tours respective tournaments, and prize money available. The total prize money available on the European Tour is approximately half that of the PGA Tour. However, this includes the majors and World Golf Championships , which are the most lucrative on the schedule, so the difference for regular tournaments

3770-434: Was agreed with the European Golf Association that the Continental Order of Merit would be discontinued. In its early years the season ran for six months from April to October, and was based entirely in Europe, mainly in Great Britain and Ireland. Over the next three decades the tour gradually lengthened and globalised. The first event held outside Europe was the 1982 Tunisian Open . That year, there were 27 tournaments and

3835-428: Was announced that the tournament would be played in 2013; later in 2012 it was announced that the tournament would not be a WGC event, but ultimately the tournament never took place. The WGC concept was introduced to create a larger group of golf tournaments with a high global profile by bringing the leading golfers from different tours together on a more regular basis, rather than just for the major championships . At

3900-624: Was established by the British-based Professional Golfers' Association through the 1970s, and responsibility was transferred to an independent PGA European Tour organisation in 1984. Most tournaments on the PGA European Tour's three tours are held in Europe, but starting in the 1980s an increasing number have been held in other parts of the world; in 2015 a majority of the ranking events on the European Tour were held outside Europe, though this included both Majors and World Golf Championship events that are ranking events for multiple tours. Europe-based events are nearly all played in Western Europe , with

3965-499: Was expensive) and played "challenge matches" against one another for purses put up by wealthy backers. The first multi-competitor stroke play tournament was The Open Championship , which was introduced in 1860. Over the following decades, the number of golf tournaments offering prize money increased slowly but steadily. Most were in the United Kingdom, but there were also several "national opens" in various countries of Continental Europe . In 1901, The Professional Golfers' Association

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4030-483: Was founded to represent the interests of professional golfers throughout Great Britain and Ireland, and it was this body that ultimately created the European Tour. As the tournament circuit grew, in 1937 the Harry Vardon Trophy was created to be awarded to the member of the PGA with the best stroke average in select major stroke play tournaments of the season. This would later become known as the Order of Merit, and at different times has been calculated using stroke average,

4095-444: Was increased to US$ 8,000,000 in 2012 and then US$ 9,000,000 in 2021 when the European Tour announced the new title sponsorship with DP World Tour. The tournament also determines the Race to Dubai Bonus Pool, which goes to the top golfers on the DP World Tour Rankings after the tournament. It was original set at US$ 10,000,000 but reduced to US$ 7,500,000 paid to the top 15 players with the Race to Dubai winner getting US$ 1,500,000. In 2012

4160-432: Was not held between 2020 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic , and the Match Play will cease following the 2023 edition. The winners receive Wedgwood trophies named for a golf legend. The HSBC Champions features the Old Tom Morris Cup; the Dell Match Play Championship, the Walter Hagen Cup; the Mexico Championship, the Gene Sarazen Cup; and the Fedex St. Jude Invitational, the Gary Player Cup. Dustin Johnson

4225-407: Was replaced by the Race to Dubai . It is calculated in euro , although around half of the events have prize funds which are fixed in other currencies, mainly pounds sterling or U.S. dollars. In these instances, the amounts are converted into euro at the exchange rate for the week that the tournament is played. The winner of the Order of Merit receives the Harry Vardon Trophy, not to be confused with

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