A couple of months ago, Rory McIlroy stated that if he won the Ryder Cup on American soil, the 2025 season “would be the best year of my career,” as it was covered by Newsweek. As we now know, Team Europe did indeed triumph at Bethpage Black, and this season is already etched into McIlroy’s future biography as his most successful yet. Even so, this didn’t mean the end of the Northern Irishman’s triumphs for the year. In fact, he just further solidified his legacy on the European Tour by winning his seventh Race to Dubai title. This latest feat allowed him to surpass the legendary Seve Ballesteros and stand alone as the second-most successful player in the DP World Tour’s year-long race. He currently trails only another European legend, Collin Montgomerie, who won eight. “He (Ballesteros) means so much to this tour and to the European Ryder Cup Team,” McIlroy told the reporters after his victory. “We rally so much around his spirit, and his quotes, and everything he meant for European golf. To equal him last year was cool, but to surpass him this year, yeah, I didn’t get this far in my dreams, so it’s very cool.” McIlroy came close to winning the Race to Dubai by also claiming the DP World Tour Championship title, a feat he had already accomplished last season. He forced a playoff against Matt Fitzpatrick by making an eagle on the 18th hole during the fourth round, but the Englishman then defeated him on the first hole of the sudden death. The five-time major champion thus concludes a season in which he won three PGA Tour events (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, The Players Championship, and The Masters Tournament). The highlight of his season came early, as his victory at Augusta National Golf Club in April allowed him to complete the career grand slam, becoming only the sixth player in history to achieve it. McIlroy then added the Irish Open title on the DP World Tour, a very special event for him for obvious reasons. Added to that is his aforementioned Ryder Cup victory. As if that weren’t enough, during 2025, he achieved two second-place finishes worldwide (Scottish Open, DP World Tour Championship) and seven other top-10 finishes. McIlroy’s next season will begin with the Australian Open, which, although played in December, is part of the 2026 DP World Tour schedule. It will be the Northern Irishman’s first time returning to this event since 2014.
https://www.newsweek.com/sports/rory-mcilroy-makes-history-race-dubai-cap-best-year-career-11055639
