Standout performers of 2015 on the European Tour

Like all great champions Rory McIlroy left his best til last, wrapping up the Race to Dubai title for a second successive year by winning the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in the desert on Sunday.

It may not have been a vintage season by McIlroy standards – there were no Major titles to add to his CV – but he showed over the weekend in Dubai why he clearly remains the European Tour’s number one golfer.

Victory over the Greg Norman-designed Earth Course brought the curtain down on his season, while taking his European Tour earnings for 2015 to over four and a half million euros.

In a dozen starts he won three times in all – twice in Dubai – which was one fewer than in 2014 when he won two Major titles as well as the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth and the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone in Ohio. Quite a haul indeed.

And this time around McIlroy had to rely on some help from new Tour supremo Keith Pelley, who agreed that the four-time Major champion did not have to complete the mandatory 13 events required to qualify for a ranking in the Race to Dubai standings.

A leg injury – sustained playing football with friends – meant McIlory was unable to defend two titles (The Open Championship and Bridgestone Invitational) during high summer.

So when he returned from injury in mid-August, at the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, it was his first start in almost two months.

Thus Pelley gave McIlroy special dispensation, allowing him to remain in the title race despite only teeing-up in 12 official events – rather than the stipulated baker’s dozen.

In the end, the 1,440,499 euros he collected by winning the WGC-Cadillac Match Play Championship proved decisive in his battle to top the Race to Dubai table for the third time in his career.

SHEFFIELD STEEL

Away from McIlroy, the past season was certainly a memorable one for the Sheffield duo of Danny Willett and Matthew Fitzpatrick.

While Willett came close to becoming the Tour’s No. 1 – and was still in the hunt going into Sunday’s final round in the Middle East – Fitzpatrick almost captured the Rookie of the Year title.

Willett won the prestigious season opener at Sun City last December before adding the European Masters title in July as Fitzpatrick finished second.

In what must have been a proud day for Sheffield, high in the Swiss Alps, Willett and Fitzpatrick were tied for the lead after 54 holes before the former’s closing 65 edged out his local rival by a single shot.

The 28-year-old Willett – a former world number one amateur and Walker Cup player – also contended for almost all of the 72 holes of The Open, where he ended up in a tie for sixth.

As for young Fitzpatrick, he went on to secure his maiden Tour title at Woburn in the British Masters supported by Sky Sports.

The talented 21-year-old weighed-in with five more top-three finishes, more than anyone else on Tour, but it was still not enough to collect the Rookie of the Year award.

BUMPER SEASON FOR ROOKIES

This honour belonged to impressive young Korean Byeong Hun An, who came, saw and conquered the European Tour’s blue riband event – the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth – by a comfortable six strokes.

But there was much more to An than this momentous victory in Surrey, as he showed by registering 15 top-25 finishes from 26 starts.

Another Asian rookie, Anirban Lahiri, won twice early in the year (in Malaysia and on home soil in India), while Rikard Karlberg triumphed in Italy.

THREE TITLES

Although not a rookie, Andy Sullivan enjoyed a remarkable breakthrough season in 2015.

The 28-year-old from Nuneaton followed up his maiden victory in January’s South African Open by returning to Johannesburg less than two months later to win the Joburg Open.

And then in October, in the Algarve, he enjoyed a remarkable nine-stroke triumph in the Portugal Masters.

What has been so impressive about Sullivan over the past 12 months is his apparent coolness under pressure, which would definitely come in handy if he qualifies for next year’s Ryder Cup contest in Minnesota.

In fact, he appears to relish being in contention. On Sunday, in Dubai, he did very little wrong, but had to accept second best to an inspired McIlroy.

On the three occasions he emerged victorious during 2015, Sullivan’s final rounds were: 67-66-66. His big test may come in the near future when, as a recognised tournament winner, he may start feeling the pressure of no longer being the hunter but rather the hunted.

However, Sullivan will need to keep his feet firmly on the ground. Exactly 20 years ago, another young golfer opened his account by winning his first three titles on the European Tour during the same season.

Back in 1995 Germany’s Alex Cejka collected a hat-trick of wins, including the prestigious season-ending Volvo Masters at Valderrama.

At Sotogrande in Spain, the then 24-year-old beat Tour No. 1 Colin Montgomerie into second place, while Bernhard Langer finished fifth.

Cejka ended the season at six in the Order of Merit, but had to play in over 140 more European Tour events before claiming a fourth victory almost seven years later.

He also moved to the United States where he contested more than 280 tournaments before finally securing his maiden PGA Tour title earlier this year at the age of 44.

The 2015 season was notable for Belgian Thomas Pieters – a two-time winner in late summer – as well as Thailand’s rising star Kiradech Aphibarnrat, who also enjoyed the taste of victory twice.

Branden Grace and Shane Lowry continued their rapid rise up the World Rankings, but the season belonged to McIlroy once again.

Despite giving way to Jordan Spieth and Jason Day on the world stage during the past 12 months, the Holywood golfer remains top of the pile in Europe – even if it did require superb closing rounds of 65 and 66 in Dubai to repel his closest challengers.

There’s plenty to look forward to in 2016.

Tagged Andy Sullivan, Byeong Hun An, Danny Willett, European Tour, Rory McIlroy