Rory McIlroy is planning a victory lap in Dubai

As the world’s best-known and most popular golfer, Rory McIlroy is always expected to perform brilliantly. This week the pressure dial is turned up in Dubai – at the 42nd and final event of the 2025 DP World Tour.

McIlroy is hot favourite to win both the tournament – the DP World Tour Championship that tees off on Thursday – and the season-long Race to Dubai order of merit.

Most bookmakers no longer accept bets on the latter, with the Northern Irishman seemingly home and hosed for a seventh Harry Vardon Trophy. For the Championship, he is at 4.45 for the win.

Next on the boards are England’s Tommy Fleetwood at 6.45, Scotland’s Bob MacIntyre at 12.80, Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg at 13.0 and England’s Tyrell Hatton at 13.90.

Those names tell us what a powerful field has assembled for the $10-million (R171-million) season finale.

The Earth Course of Jumeirah Golf Estates puts a premium on long driving and putting finesse, qualities that have defined McIlroy’s enduring success.

The fact that he has won often at the venue and is in a relaxed frame of mind after an outstanding year – cracking the Grand Slam, winning the Ryder Cup with Europe, winning the Irish Open and winning thrice on the PGA tour – mean he couldn’t be anywhere other than top of the odds. Indeed, 4.45 might be seen as a value proposition.

Punters looking for longer odds might be drawn to the recent form of the likes of Alex Noren (22.70), Angel Ayora (36.00), Keita Nakajima (53.00), Daniel Brown (69.00) and Li Haotong (73.00).

All these must be considered for Top 10 and Top 20 bets and for the Top nationality categories.

In the head-to-heads, a 72-hole shootout between McIlroy (1.67) and Fleetwood (2.25) will get plenty of TV coverage, while Marco Penge (1.73) versus Justin Rose (2.15) is an intriguing clash of new and old school.

McIlroy enters the last mile of the Race to Dubai with a 767-point advantage over Penge and a 1,720-point cushion over Hatton, with those two the only players who can overtake him as European No 1.

Penge would have to win (for 2,000 points) or place very high, with McIlroy faltering, for the English breakout star to have a title chance.

All Betway odds correct at time of writing and subject to change.