Danny, the Hero Dubai Desert Classic is a good way to mark the start of your third year as Title Partner of the DP World Tour, how fantastic have the past three years been?

The past three years have been wonderful for DP World as the title partner of the DP World Tour. We first became the title partner of the DP World Tour Championship in 2012 and transitioned to become the new title sponsor of the tour from the start of the 2022 season. The tour is adding new global events to the schedule year after year, culminating in the season-ending finale at Jumeriah Golf Estates. 

The 2024 DP World Tour schedule will feature a minimum of 44 tournaments in 24 countries and across five continents. We are delighted with how the partnership is evolving year upon year, both from a brand and commercial perspective. 

You must be excited to welcome the world’s best golfers back to Dubai for what promises to be an incredible start to the season?

It’s fantastic having the likes of Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood competing in Dubai at both the start and the end of the DP World Tour season. 

Dubai resident, Fleetwood, is a good friend of DP World’s, with the Tommy Fleetwood Academy being part of the DP World Golf Performance Centre at Jumeirah Golf Estates. We were incredibly proud of his victory, taking him to 11th in the world rankings. His birdie-birdie finish was superb, it showed elite performance under intense pressure. 

Andrew Redington/Getty Images

One of our DP World colleagues was lucky enough to be competing alongside Tommy at the Dubai Invitational. They had a superb time together and I’m certain Tommy gave him a few tips!

How much of a significant history does the Hero Dubai Desert Classic have for the DP World Tour, especially with it being a standout event on Dubai’s sporting and social calendar?

The Hero Dubai Desert Classic is blessed with an abundance of unforgettable memories in its 35-year span. Some of the greatest players of all time including Seve Ballesteros, Ernie Els, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have been champions which proves how prestigious this event is at the start of the DP World Tour season. 

Tiger Woods made one of the Desert Classic’s most memorable back nine charges on his way to victory in 2008

The Desert Classic is the first Rolex Series event of the season and part of a five-week swing in the Middle East, with events taking place in the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar, which is great for golf in the region.

A new-look DP World Tour 2024 season also sees a re-arranged tournament schedule, why was this needed?

I feel the re-arranged DP World Tour schedule keeps the fans engaged throughout the season with five innovative ‘Global Swings’ from November 2023 to August 2024. The DP World Tour playoffs in the final phase of the season is an incredible way to build up the excitement ahead of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship. 

As in previous years, the Rolex Series tournaments make a return with the first one this week at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic. How crucial are these to the backbone of the DP World Tour?

The Rolex Series offers increased prize funds and attracts the best players from around the globe which makes them the stand-out events on the golfing calendar besides the majors. There are five Rolex Series events throughout the season, starting with the Desert Classic this week which has USD $9million prize fund. 

This all leads up to the DP World Tour Championship where the top 50 players on the DP World Tour will compete to see who will be crowned the Race to Dubai champion and the DP World Tour Championship winner. 

We are looking forward to seeing who will lift the title this week at Emirates Golf Club. 

Will we see the DP World container for recycled golf balls initiative being run again? How successful has that been over the previous years in what it provides?

You sure will! The DP World ‘Second Life’ Container will be returning for its third season on the DP World Tour. 

This initiative has been phenomenal in terms of increasing accessibility in golf and making the sport more sustainable. We have already collected over 280,000 balls in two years and are hoping this continues to improve grassroots golf around the world.

Danny van Otterdijk and Chris May with the DP World container

The Junior Golf Foundation Kenya and the South African Disabled Golf Association (SADGA) have already benefitted from receiving ‘second life’ golf balls from DP World and we hope to make a more significant impact this season. We have big plans for the container in 2024. 

Sustainability is a big part of the DP World Tour, how is the DP World working with the Tour to implement this?

Sustainability is always at the forefront of DP World’s strategy. This week is the perfect example of the astounding work the DP World Tour is doing with the Hero Dubai Desert Classic being a geo-certified tournament. 

Spectators are encouraged to travel to the tournament via metro and use refillable water bottles rather than single-use plastic bottles. Believe it or not, the Desert Classic have diverted over 120,000 single-use plastic bottles from landfill since 2022.

Images: Supplied