Billy Horschel has every reason to be confident about his chances in Dubai, especially after his impressive performance at this year's Open Championship, where he finished as runner-up to Xander Schauffele. The American golfer is now aiming to showcase his best form at the DP World Tour Championship (January 14-17) in Dubai this week. Horschel seeks to add the prestigious trophy to his already memorable BMW PGA Championship victory at Wentworth Club.
Horschel's confidence is bolstered by his remarkable victory at Wentworth Club, where he triumphed over the Race to Dubai's top two players, Rory McIlroy and Thriston Lawrence, in a playoff. This triumph came just two months after his runner-up finish at The Open Championship, and Horschel is eager for another strong performance overseas at Jumeirah Golf Estates this week.
"I'm excited to be here," said the World Number 15. "It's their Tour Championship. It's their last event of the year. It means a lot to everyone who gets here. It's very similar to our TOUR Championship on the PGA TOUR."
Horschel remains a staunch supporter of the DP World Tour despite the increasing influence of LIV. "I support this Tour. I love this Tour. I think the world of this Tour," he said. "Obviously the PGA TOUR is where I play mostly but I want to make sure that these guys understand how special this Tour is, how special I think it is, and then what I think of them as golfers. I think they are really great players out here."
On the benefits of playing globally, Horschel added: "My college coach said if you want to be a world-class player, global player, you've got to travel around the world and play well and you've got to win events to consider yourself a world-class player."
Horschel feels that traveling around the world for tournaments has also made him a better person. "I've become a lot better of a person, I guarantee you that, by having to understand different cultures. Try to communicate with people that may not speak English as well or I may not speak their language as well, so you try to communicate that way," he said.
Horschel is pleased with his performance during the 2024 season. "To play well at The Open Championship and to come up just short to Xander, who played a beautiful final round, and to win the BMW PGA at Wentworth for the second time, against Rory, and everyone knows what I think of Rory and where he stands in the game of golf. This year, those are the two real highlights of my year that I have had," he said.
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