After a 5-under 67 in the third round, Henrik Stenson remains atop the leaderboard at the season-ending DP World Tour Championship. Here’s what You Oughta Know heading into the final round in Dubai, where the Swede clings to a one-shot lead as he closes in on another season-long title:
• Two months after claiming the FedEx Cup on the PGA Tour, Stenson is 18 holes away from claiming the season-long Race to Dubai championship. Should he pull off the double, it would be an unprecedented feat, though Luke Donald won the Race to Dubai title in 2011 after topping the money list on the PGA Tour for the 2011 season.
• Remarkably, a win Sunday at Jumeirah Golf Estates would be Stenson’s first of the season on the European Tour. His two FedEx Cup Playoff wins were not recognized by the circuit as are majors and WGC events, but the Swede was still able to ascend the standings thanks to a flurry of top-five finishes across the second half of the season.
• One week after claiming his first career European Tour win in Turkey, Victor Dubuisson again finds himself in contention, one shot behind Stenson after a third-round 64 that included 11 birdies. Dubuisson entered the week with slim prospects of winning the season-long title, but he’s using the home stretch of the European Tour season to rocket up the world rankings. His victory last week over an elite field that included world No. 1 Tiger Woods moved the Frenchman from No. 108 to 39th in the world, and he can expect another boost this week.
• Beginning the week fourth in the Race to Dubai standings, Ian Poulter is Stenson’s closest pursuer in the season-long race and will begin the final round tied for third, four shots off the pace. Poulter briefly caught Stenson during the third round and will look to do so again Sunday to have any chance of ending the year atop the standings. Should Poulter win in Dubai, though, Stenson will still take home the overall title if he finishes second.
• At No. 54 among the 60-man field gathered this week, Alejandro Canizares barely snuck into the field for the season finale but has made the most of the opportunity. The Spaniard’s lone European Tour win came in 2006, but Canizares is in contention for a second trophy this week, having led after an opening-round 66. The 30-year-old will begin the final round tied for third alongside Poulter, four shots off the pace set by Stenson.
• A pair of former world No. 1 players have an opportunity to end otherwise disappointing seasons on a high note with a low round Sunday in Dubai. Both Rory McIlroy and Luke Donald have yet to win in 2013, and each will begin the final round tied for eighth, seven shots behind Stenson. It’s a tall task for each to try to catch the Swede, but both McIlroy and Donald have positive memories upon which to build, having left Jumeirah Golf Estates with the Race to Dubai trophy in 2012 and 2011, respectively.
