Fleetwood and Rose relishing Race to Dubai finale
As the Race to Dubai concludes this week, Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose are excited by the prospect of going head-to-head for the title.
Tommy Fleetwood is relishing the challenge of taking on Justin Rose and Sergio Garcia at the conclusion of the Race to Dubai.
Fleetwood leads the European Tour standings heading into the final event of the season at the DP World Tour Championship this week, although fellow Englishman Rose remains very much in the hunt.
However, Fleetwood is simply delighted to be in contention at this stage and can scarcely believe that he is taking on Rose and Masters champion Sergio Garcia.
"It's not intimidating or even stressful in any way," he said.
"I'm not sure nervous is the right word but it's like the good kind of nerves where you're trying to win the Race to Dubai. It's by no means a burden or stressful. It's actually an amazing opportunity and it's a massive privilege to be able to actually be playing.
"I'm turning up tomorrow, final event of the year and I'm playing with Justin Rose trying to win a Race to Dubai. Sergio could win it as well. Sergio, Justin Rose and then me - that's pretty cool, that.
"I'm really looking forward to it. I think it's brilliant for myself, I think it's brilliant for people that have been around as a team this year. I think it will be great for my mum and dad.
<script></script>The #RaceToDubai top two pic.twitter.com/n2YyT3Zp9i
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"Trying to win a Race to Dubai, being around these people that we've watched play majors and big events and play Ryder Cups throughout the year.
"They have essentially done things that I want to do and this is one of my first times, experiences, in trying to win one of the biggest titles in the world with the best players in the world. I'm very excited about it.
"There's a list of very, very great players that have won the Race to Dubai. If it's my turn, then that's amazing, that's brilliant."
And Rose says he was similarly awestruck when he won the Order of Merit - the previous iteration of the competition - in 2007.
"I still think it's one of my biggest achievements in the game," he said. "Any time you beat world-class players over the course of a year, it means often a lot more than it does winning in a week.
"For my name to go on a trophy that was dominated by Europe's greatest, when I look at that: [Nick] Faldo and Seve [Ballesteros] and [Sandy] Lyle and Woosie [Ian Woosnam] and Monty [Colin Montgomerie] … and then to see my name go alongside Ernie Els and Retief [Goosen] and guys like that, it's a list that's certainly very, very impressive."
