DP World Tour: Alejandro Del Rey wins first title with win at Ras Al Khaimah Championship | Golf news
Alejandro Del Rey cruised to the biggest win of his career by wrapping up a dominant four-shot win at the DP World Tour Ras Al Khaimah Championship.
Del Rey took a two-stroke lead into the final day at Al Hamra GC in the United Arab Emirates and never relinquished control, bogeying three of his opening five holes to immediately pull away from the chase.
The Spaniard closed with a bogey-free 66 to end the week on 22 under and claim his first DP World Tour title, while England’s Marcus Armitage – playing alongside Del Rey and Jason Scrivener – carded a four-under 68 to finish runner-up.
Five birdies in the final six holes saw David Puig record a total of 65 to move into third place ahead of Scrivener, with England’s Joe Dean tied for fifth with Ivan Canter and Sebastian Soderberg.
Former Masters winner Patrick Reed finished in a tie for eighth in a group that includes Scotsman Scott Jamieson, while Adrian Saddier’s final-round 68 included an incredible hole-in-one at the par-3 seventh.
How Del Rey closed out the win in the Middle East
Del Rey birdied the first and fired his approach to tap-in range at the second, with a 10-foot birdie at the par-four fifth that gave him a five-stroke cushion and complete control of the tournament.
Armitage opened with six straight pars but made back-to-back birdies from the seventh to move within three of Del Rey at the turn, only for his playing partner to extend his lead with a chip from the 11th green.
Del Rey recovered from a wayward par-four drive to find the green in regulation and the hole from 50 feet for a stunning birdie, then moved six ahead when he added another at the 13th and Armitage failed to match his effort.
Armitage birdied the par-five 14th to close the deficit but could get no closer to Del Rey, who closed out his bogey-free round with a tap-in par before being greeted by more Spanish players on the 18th green.
It’s amazing, Del Rey said. “Last year I got to the point where I felt like I wasn’t having as much fun on the track, because – for me – just playing for 20th, 30th place wasn’t that important.
“I’ve been really working since then because I just didn’t want to be in that position for much longer. I feel like I’ve played with a lot of friends over the years who have won here and I know I could have just not shown up, I’m just happy it finally came.”
More to come…
What’s next?
The DP World Tour remains in the Middle East for the Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship, held at the Royal GC in the Kingdom of Bahrain and the latest event in the ‘International Swing’. Live coverage starts on Thursday from 8.30am on Sky Sports Golf. Get Sky Sports or stream without a contract on NOW.
