European Tour: Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship power rankings

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ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – JANUARY 16: Justin Rose of England in action during the second round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship at the Abu Dhabi Golf Cub on January 16, 2015 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images) /

Justin Rose put together one of his most brilliant stretches of his career to cap 2017. He posted 10 straight top-10 finishes that included wins at the WGC-HSBC Champions, the Turkish Airlines Open and the Indonesian Masters. It did a lot to salvage what turned into a somewhat disappointing season by his standards after a playoff loss at the Masters.

This will be only Rose’s third start at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship as he typically begins his year with a US-heavy schedule. He may want to keep this one on the calendar.

The Englishman tied for second in his debut in 2013 and tied for 12th in 2015.

Rose didn’t have a great putting year in 2017 (123rd in strokes gained putting on the PGA Tour) but the putting surfaces shouldn’t be too daunting for the veteran. Elsewhere, his game was sterling as he finished 11th on the PGA Tour in scoring average.

At 35th in driving accuracy, Rose should be able to steer clear of the trouble that can pounce on wayward drives here. He can also put down the pedal when he needs to as demonstrated by finishing eighth in birdie average.

Compared to many in the field, Rose will be relatively sharp with his last start in Indonesia a month ago.

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