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The Hero Dubai Desert Classic marked the first of five Rolex Series events on the Race to Dubai in 2026, with increased purses and points on offer at the DP World Tour’s flagship events.
The tournament featured a prize fund of US$9 million, with 8,000 Race to Dubai points available. The same allocation was set for the Genesis Scottish Open and BMW PGA Championship, while points were due to rise to 9,000 at the Abu Dhabi Championship.
The stakes were set to increase further at the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, where $10 million and 12,000 points were on offer.
The event was also the second of seven tournaments on the International Swing, one of five Global Swings in Phase One of the season ahead of the Back 9 and the DP World Tour Play-Offs. For the purposes of the International Swing Rankings, the points available at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic were capped at 5,000.
Attention was firmly on Rory McIlroy and Tyrrell Hatton as they attempted to add to their impressive records at Emirates Golf Club, but both faced a world-class field in the battle for the Dallah Trophy. World Number Three Tommy Fleetwood teed it up alongside fellow Major champions Shane Lowry, Danny Willett, Francesco Molinari, Pádraig Harrington, Patrick Reed and Dustin Johnson.
Former Ryder Cup Captain Luke Donald was also in action, joined by fellow Bethpage winner Viktor Hovland. Race to Dubai leader Jayden Schaper was among the contenders, alongside 2026 season winners Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, David Puig and Nacho Elvira, setting the stage for a wide-open contest in the desert.
The 2026 Hero Dubai Desert Classic carried a purse of $9 million, with the winner earning $1.53 million and the runner-up taking home $990,000.
Patrick Reed claimed the fourth DP World Tour title of his career with a composed four-shot victory at the 2026 Hero Dubai Desert Classic.
Here’s the prize money breakdown for each golfer at the 2026 Hero Dubai Desert Classic
1 – Patrick Reed – €1,302,931.17
2 – Andy Sullivan – €843,073.11
3 – Julien Guerrier – €482,850.96
4 – Nicolai Højgaard – €325,477.32
4 – Francesco Molinari – €325,477.32
4 – Jayden Schaper – €325,477.32
7 – Marcus Armitage – €197,738.97
7 – Ricardo Gouveia – €197,738.97
7 – David Puig – €197,738.97
10 – Martin Couvra – €142,045.05
10 – Thorbjørn Olesen – €142,045.05
10 – Darius van Driel – €142,045.05
14 – Thomas Detry – €112,971.80
14 – Rikuya Hoshino – €112,971.80
14 – Viktor Hovland – €112,971.80
14 – Andrea Pavan – €112,971.80
14 – Johannes Veerman – €112,971.80
19 – Rafa Cabrera Bello – €89,672.32
19 – Jorge Campillo – €89,672.32
19 – Wenyi Ding – €89,672.32
19 – Hennie du Plessis – €89,672.32
19 – Alex Fitzpatrick – €89,672.32
19 – Jacques Kruyswijk – €89,672.32
19 – Tom McKibbin – €89,672.32
26 – Angel Ayora – €72,810.86
26 – Alejandro del Rey – €72,810.86
26 – Angel Hidalgo – €72,810.86
26 – Daniel Hillier – €72,810.86
26 – Oliver Lindell – €72,810.86
26 – Zander Lombard – €72,810.86
26 – Shane Lowry – €72,810.86
33 – Sean Crocker – €56,141.00
33 – Ewen Ferguson – €56,141.00
33 – Tyrrell Hatton – €56,141.00
33 – Romain Langasque – €56,141.00
33 – Rory McIlroy – €56,141.00
33 – JC Ritchie – €56,141.00
33 – Marcel Schneider – €56,141.00
33 – Nicolai von Dellingshausen – €56,141.00
41 – Dan Bradbury – €45,985.81
41 – Ivan Cantero – €45,985.81
41 – Tommy Fleetwood – €45,985.81
41 – Grant Forrest – €45,985.81
45 – Laurie Canter – €39,854.37
45 – Ryan Fox – €39,854.37
45 – Mikael Lindberg – €39,854.37
45 – Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen – €39,854.37
49 – Ugo Coussaud – €31,423.63
49 – Joel Girrbach – €31,423.63
49 – Yuto Katsuragawa – €31,423.63
49 – David Micheluzzi – €31,423.63
49 – Eddie Pepperell – €31,423.63
49 – Richie Ramsay – €31,423.63
49 – Freddy Schott – €31,423.63
56 – Michael Hollick – €24,525.76
56 – Casey Jarvis – €24,525.76
56 – Frederic Lacroix – €24,525.76
56 – Joost Luiten – €24,525.76
56 – Ashun Wu – €24,525.76
61 – Sam Bairstow – €21,460.04
61 – Manuel Elvira – €21,460.04
61 – Adrian Meronk – €21,460.04
64 – Ross Fisher – €19,160.75
64 – Dylan Frittelli – €19,160.75
64 – Victor Perez – €19,160.75
67 – Niklas Lemke – €17,627.89
68 – Jens Dantorp – €16,861.46
69 – Jeong Weon Ko – €16,095.03
70 – Jeff Winther – €15,328.60
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