Tommy Fleetwood speaks to the media during a press conference prior to the DP World Tour Championship Dubai at Jumeirah Golf Estates – Earth Course on November 19, 2019, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images)

By Kent Gray
The well-worn cliché warns to be wary of the sick or injured golfer. For Race to Dubai pole-sitter Bernd Wiesberger, it may be more a case of watching out for the footloose and fancy-free Tommy Fleetwood.

Fresh from his first win in 22 months and a superbly consistent run in between highlighted by three-second place finishes and another nine top 10s, Fleetwood is suddenly nipping at the Austrian’s heels.

He can capture the overall Race to Dubai title for the second time in three years if he wins the DP World Tour Championship starting at Jumeirah Golf Estates on Thursday and Wiesberger places lower than solo second.

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The 28-year-old Englishman’s playoff victory at last week’s Nedbank Golf Challenge is irrefutable proof his game is on good shape and his mind appears free of any baggage too.

“I think the lucky thing is for me is that I guess I know I have it.  Like I’ve done it before.  It’s not like I’m chasing something that I don’t have or haven’t done, so that feeling is lovely,” said Fleetwood who went close to defending his race to Dubai title last season before surrendering the title to Ryder Cup sidekick Francesco Molinari.

“I guess if there was something on my side, I have the experience of 2017 and 2018 of coming to this event with a chance to win it.  So I know that there’s four days and you can’t really buy experience, so I’ll go out there and it won’t be an unfamiliar feeling.

“You know, you’re lucky; it’s a privilege, everybody works for the same thing and you’re one of those guys that’s going to tee off on Thursday with a chance of winning The Race to Dubai.  I consider myself very lucky and they are experiences that you’ll take with you. 

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“I’m not really that focused on it. I’m not going to put too much pressure on myself. I’m really not going to finish this year that disappointed if I don’t win it.”

That Laissez-faire approach, mixed with lashings of confidence from Sun City, could make Fleetwood extremely tough to beat come Sunday evening, especially with all the expectation heaped on Wiesberger after his three-win season.

Before his win in South Africa, Fleetwood’s year was good without being great. Now the two-time Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship winner has a chance to make it exceptional.

“Looking at the year realistically [before his win last week], it’s still been a very, very good year, and I’ve done so many good things, but without that win it doesn’t look the same and all of a sudden you have a win on there and things look very, very different. 

“I have higher expectations of myself than anybody else, really. You’re never satisfied, even if you finish second in events. Take The Open, for example. It was my best finish in a major, best finish of the year was in The Open, but you’re not fully satisfied because you haven’t won.”

Fleetwood was emotional after finally breaking through in Sun City last week, especially when the $2.5 million prize was mentioned in the immediate aftermath. On Tuesday, he reiterated how it was amazing to secure his young family’s future at the tender age of 28 but insisted it was not what he was about.

“I’m sure this week, if I had a chance of winning coming down the back nine, I won’t be thinking I can win $3 million.  It’s amazing at the end of it that you do, and it’s great the chances that we have and the sponsors that go into it these days are amazing, and everybody is very grateful for it.  But actually, winning The Race to Dubai or winning the DP World Tour Championship, or winning the Nedbank, those are the special moments, holding those trophies.”

Fleetwood’s track record on Earth isn’t overly flash, a T-9 finish in 2016 his highlight. Not that he seems overly bothered by that, reminding the gathered press that he missed the cut five straight times before first winning in Abu Dhabi and “five or six times” before he won the Open De France. “I missed the cut the year after as well. It doesn’t always follow.”

“The thing about this event in general is it’s very, very bunched up. There’s always been a lot of birdies. Sometimes I haven’t made enough. Sometimes I’ve made too many bogeys. It’s just one of those things where I haven’t had amazing results at the event.

“You have to play extremely well against all these players to find yourself in contention. If you don’t, you’re not going to be there, and that’s it, really. You can only try your best. It’s been a long year.

“Obviously I’m clearly playing well at the moment, but we’ll see. I’m not too worried about it. But I would love to play well. I think I’ve played well enough in the past, but I just haven’t put it all together. Maybe this time.”

Wiesberger and co. can’t say they haven’t been forewarned.