Race to Dubai Standings: Sami Valimaki Moves Inside Top 15 with Win

Finland’s Sami Valimaki has moved into 13th on the Race to Dubai leaderboard after his maiden European Tour victory in Oman on Sunday afternoon.

Sami Valimaki was featuring in just his sixth event on the Tour, when he overcame South Africa’s Brandon Stone in a playoff at Al Mouj Golf to win the tournament, leaping up the Race to Dubai leaderboard.

Although he was previously outside the top 100, the win for Sami Valimaki has seen him jump up 91 places in the rankings, while Stone also moved inside the top 20 with a runner-up finish.

American star Patrick Reed remains at the top of the Race to Dubai leaderboard following his sublime victory at the WGC-Mexico Championship two weeks ago.

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Reed won the event by a single shot at Chapultepec, finishing on a score of -18, and with the victory, he has made the jump back into the top ten on the Official World Golf Rankings.

The American, who won the Masters back in 2018, was featured on the European Tour for the second time in the 2020 season having failed to make the cut at the Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers earlier this month.

The victory in Mexico sees Reed move to the summit of the Race to Dubai leaderboard, with the 1,500 points for the win moving him clear at the top.

Lee Westwood now sits in 2nd spot on the Race to Dubai, having led the standings since mid-January, following his victory at the first Rolex Series tournament of the 2020 season, the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA. The Englishman now sits in 2nd spot, 218 points behind the American, but he did improve his points tally, following a T22 finish in Mexico.

Lucas Herbert took the victory at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, his maiden European Tour title. The Aussie sits third in the table, having made all five cuts since the turn of the year.

Along with his victory in Dubai in the final week of January, Herbert has finished inside the top 30 at both the Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers and the ISPS Handa Vic Open. He finished just outside the top 50 in Mexico this week.

After a four-year wait, Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell took a European Tour victory earlier this month, by winning the Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers. That win moved him into the top three on the Race to Dubai leaderboard, but he has now dropped down to 4th.

Although he is yet to win on the European Tour in 2020, England’s Tommy Fleetwood sits in 5th spot on the Race to Dubai leaderboard, following a runners-up finish at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA, plus top 20 results at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and WGC-Mexico Championship.

PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA – MARCH 01: Tommy Fleetwood of England checks his yardage book on the first green during the final round of the Honda Classic at PGA National Resort and Spa Champion course on March 01, 2020 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /

Erik van Rooyen is the leading South African on the Race to Dubai leaderboard, following a T3 result in Mexico last week. He has made the move into the top 40 on the Official World Golf Rankings because of it, and he sits in the 6th spot on the European Tour’s points list.

Frenchman Victor Perez was one of three men to finish runner-up to Westwood at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA. He did sit inside the top five prior to the WGC-Mexico Championship but sits 7th after finishing outside the top 50 at Chapultepec.

The second South African on the leaderboard is Christiaan Bezuidenhout, who moved into the top 50 on the Official World Golf Rankings for the first time after winning on the Challenge Tour last month. A T29 finish in Mexico saw him remain in 8th place, just 1.4 points behind Perez.

Branden Grace led the Race to Dubai after his victory at the South African Open hosted by the City of Johannesburg in early January, but he now sits in 9th spot, dropping three places from last week, after finishing outside the top 40 in Mexico.

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA – FEBRUARY 03: Branden Grace of South Africa walks off the 18th green during the final round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on February 03, 2019 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

The final man inside the top ten on the Race to Dubai points list is Englishman Matthew Fitzpatrick, the third man to finish runner-up at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGA. A T37 result at Chapultepec saw Fitzpatrick drop down to 10th on the leaderboard.

The European Tour continues on Thursday, as the second desert swing of the season continues in Qatar, with the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters taking place at Education City Golf Club.

Race to Dubai Top Ten:

Patrick Reed (USA) – 1,500.0
Lee Westwood (ENG) – 1,281.8
Lucas Herbert (AUS) – 829.9
Graeme McDowell (NIR) – 728.4
Tommy Fleetwood (ENG) – 702.0
Erik van Rooyen (RSA) – 667.0
Victor Perez (FRA) – 638.7
Christiaan Bezuidenhout (RSA) – 637.3
Branden Grace (RSA) – 618.4
Matthew Fitzpatrick (ENG) – 608.6

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13. Sami Valimaki (FIN) – 522.5

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Upcoming Tournaments:

Mar 5-8: Commercial Bank Qatar Masters – 2,750 points available

Mar 12-15: Magical Kenya Open presented by Absa – 2,000

Mar 19-22: Hero Indian Open – 2,750

Mar 25-29: WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play – 9,000

Apr 9-12: The Masters – 10,000

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