Rory McIlroy secured his seventh Race to Dubai title on Sunday, drawing praise from one-time PGA Tour winner Michael S. Kim. The Northern Irishman claimed the season-long crown for the fourth year in a row, despite narrowly missing out on the DP World Tour Championship.

McIlroy started the final round tied for the lead and briefly pulled two shots clear on the back nine. Matt Fitzpatrick surged ahead with a bogey-free 66 to reach 18-under, forcing McIlroy into a playoff after a 15-foot eagle on the 18th.

Kim, who finished T24 at 8-under in Dubai, took to X after the round and posted a short, three-word message for Rory McIlroy:

“My goodness Rory.”

The playoff turned quickly against McIlroy when his tee shot found the water on the par-5. Both players missed the green with their third shots, but Fitzpatrick got up and down for par to claim his first global win since October 2023 and his third DP World Tour Championship title. McIlroy missed his 20-foot par putt and settled for second.

Even with the playoff loss, McIlroy easily topped the Race to Dubai standings. Ludvig Åberg, Tommy Fleetwood, Laurie Canter, and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen tied for third. Rasmus Højgaard finished seventh, while Robert MacIntyre, Ángel Ayora and Haotong Li completed the top 10.

Rory McIlroy gets emotional after beating Seve Ballesteros’ Race to Dubai record

Rory McIlroy has now surpassed Seve Ballesteros in the Race to Dubai record books, moving past the Spanish legend’s six titles and sitting second only to Colin Montgomerie. Speaking to Sky Sports, he admitted the achievement was emotional. He revealed that he spoke with Carmen, Ballesteros’ ex-wife, who told him that Seve would have been proud of the milestone.

“It [overtaking Ballesteros] is amazing. I had a conversation with Carmen [Ballesteros’ ex-wife] before I went out to play today, and she told me how proud he would have been. He means so much to this Tour and the European Ryder Cup team. We rally so much around his spirit and around his quotes and everything he meant for European golf,” McIlroy said.

“To equal him last year was cool, but to surpass him this year, I didn’t get this far in my dreams, so it’s very cooll,” he added.

Apart from his DP World Tour milestone, Rory McIlroy has had a strong PGA Tour season. The world No. 2 played 16 events in 2025, winning three titles, finishing runner-up once and recording eight top-10s. Earlier this year, he also completed his career Grand Slam with a Masters victory.