Race to Dubai: ‘Stale’ Danny Willett unable to overhaul Rory McIlroy

Kristoffer Broberg beat Patrick Reed in a play-off to claim his first European Tour title.

(Getty Images)

Rory McIlroy will take a lead of just 1,613 points into the DP World Tour Championship this week as he looks to win a third Race to Dubai title in the last four years.

The Northern Irishman did not play the BMW Masters in Shanghai and would have been overtaken by Danny Willett if the Englishman had finished alone in 28th or better.

However, a final round of 70 at Lake Malaren left Willett in a tie for 28th with two other players as he looks to finish the year as European No 1 for the first time. Sweden’s Kristoffer Broberg won, beating American Patrick Reed in a play-off to claim his first European Tour title.

A total of seven players can still win the Race to Dubai, although Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace need to finish second or better at Jumeirah Golf Estates, while An Byeong-hun has to win.

Willett said: “Last week was pretty stale [at the WGC-HSBC Champions] and this week’s just been stale again. I putted pretty poorly for four days. I never really got anything going.

“It’s close, though, and I guess you can look at it as if I go there next week and I win, I win. It’s one of those good situations to be in. I’ve got a day and a half off to regroup and chill out and I know I’m going to have a chance next week.”

McIlroy has held top spot since finishing fourth at the Masters in April, pulling clear of the pack with victory in the WGC-Cadillac Match Play three weeks later.

With the four-time major winner out of action in the summer due to an ankle injury, Willett closed the gap with a tie for sixth in the Open at St Andrews and his second victory of the season a week later in the Omega European Masters.

Rose, who followed up his victory in the Hong Kong Open with a share of seventh in Shanghai, said: “I always knew I was going to have to win one of these two weeks, so hopefully I’m deferring and can finish it off on the grand stage in Dubai.”

McIlroy will be confident of holding on to top spot given his record in the season-ending event, the 26-year-old finishing in the top five in five of his six appearances, winning in 2012 and finishing second behind Henrik Stenson last year.

Broberg, meanwhile, was almost lost for words after his win in Shanghai. He birdied the first extra hole after he and Reed had finished tied on 17 under par, with overnight leader Jaidee, An and Stenson all missing birdie putts on the 72nd hole to get into the play-off.

“It’s a dream come true,” Broberg said after a closing 68. “I have worked so hard all my life for this. I have no words. I’m just so happy to win on the main tour.”

Reed had held a one-shot lead with two holes to play after holing out from 100 yards from a fairway bunker on the 15th for eagle and carding his fifth birdie of the day on the next.

However, the 25-year-old then bogeyed the 17th and was furious to leave a birdie putt short from 12 feet on the 18th, tapping in for par before throwing his ball into a lake. Broberg then missed a birdie putt from a similar distance to take it into a play-off