David Cannon/Getty Images

By Kent Gray
Tommy Fleetwood intends spending the weekend in a self-imposed “bubble”, Jon Rahm won’t mind if the tricky conditions of Friday persist right the way to Sunday and Bernd Wiesberger is confident he has the mettle to fend off all the outside influences.

For a rough translation, read that all three Race to Dubai contenders still feel very much in this season-long fight with just 36 holes to play.

By the close of play Friday Fleetwood held pole-position in the projected Race to Dubai standings after a 68 left him three off Mike Lorenzo-Vera’s -12 halfway lead at the DP World Tour Championship. A sensational eagle, inspired in part by Rory McIlroy’s ‘”shot of the year”  the previous evening, saw Rahm sign for a 69 and a share of second with Fleetwood while Wiesberger was hanging tough after a 71 that sees him tied 13th overnight.

“Yeah, it’s just a classic case, really, of trying to stay in the moment and each shot as it comes,” said Fleetwood who knows better than anyone the pressures of the final 36 holes of the season after winning the Race to Dubai in 2017 before dipping out to pal Francesco Molinari for the title last year.

“There’s a lot going on over the weekend. There’s a lot of different scenarios and players in the mix. There’s a lot of things going on around you, so the more internally focused you can be and the more you can just stay in your bubble, it will just be a great challenge going into the weekend trying to do that.”

Fleetwood was thrilled with his fight on Friday after a three-putt bogey on the 3rd and another dropped shot at the long par-3 3rd threatened to derail his second round.

“I felt like I did a really good job after the 4th of just playing really good, solid golf. It wasn’t easy today. The wind really picked up,” said Fleetwood who bounced back with three birdies in his final four holes on the outward nine before mixing three more gains with a bogey on the 16th.

“It really does help when you bounce straight back. I think today, birdieing the last, that obviously leaves the day with a lovely feel. But just have to keep going. I think I’ve done a very good job so far of just staying present and moving on to the next golf shot. You really don’t know what’s going to happen. There’s plenty of birdies out there and plenty of bogeys as well, so you just have to take every shot as it comes and just do your best.”

After a bogey on the 3rd and a double on the 8th, Rahm rebounded with a homeward nine played in four under, highlighted by his eagle when he hit a five wood from 258 yards just beyond the pin and holed the slippery downhiller.

Rahm plays his third shot on the 14th hole during the second round of the DP World Tour Championship. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)

“I was jealous of Rory yesterday so I tried to copy that,” Rahm joked afterwards before revealing a serious mid-round comeback plan conquered up with caddie Adam Hayes.

“Adam and I agreed, we were walking down on 9 and just said, let’s get to even par before 14. And 14 through 18, some birdie holes try to catch up. That was the mission. Made a great birdie on 9 and kept trying with a lot of good putts, a lot of good tries.

“When I made that birdie on 14, I think it was, to get to even, I felt like mission accomplished. I relaxed on the last three holes and even though I had a little miss on 15, I still got to finish pretty strong.

“…It’s a difficult day out there. Very windy. That’s why I’m so proud of turning it around the way I did because things were not looking good. It’s playing hard. Hopefully it keeps playing hard and Mike [Lorenzo-Vera] doesn’t get too far away from us right now.”

Wiesberger tees off on the 2nd hole on Earth at Jumeirah Golf Estates (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)

Wiesberger came into the week atop the Race to Dubai standings and knows the equation hasn’t changed even though Fleetwood has overtaken him in the projected standings.

“I’ve played so well in the big tournaments when I was in position, that I feel quite comfortable regardless what’s thrown at me,” the Austrian said after a day when he “couldn’t get any momentum” but battled on regardless.

“We have so many good players out here all capable of being in my position. Just cherish being the one who has tried to be hunted down. Try to do the best we can and enjoy it as much as we can.

“As I’ve said, you don’t know how many times you get in a position, and when you are, it’s a great feeling. So hopefully we get to finish the season stronger with another couple of good rounds and we’ll see what happens then.”