For this first big meeting of the DP World Tour in Abu Dhabi, the show was there between the exploits of the players and the dantesque conditions of the Yas Links. In the end, it was Thomas Pieters who knew how to best tame the course to win the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Victor Dubuisson finished in the top 5 of the tournament, two strokes behind the Belgian.

Thomas Pieters winner of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship - via Twitter © @DPWorldTour

Thomas Pieters winner of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship – via Twitter © @DPWorldTour

For the first edition of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on the Yas Links, the course initially struggled to defend itself on Thursday with idyllic conditions and a leader at -9. This -9 card from Scott Jamieson will remain the best of the week. The wind then picked up, particularly on Friday, resulting in significantly higher scores.

In the final game in the fourth round alongside Scott Jamieson (-11) and Shane Lowry (-10), Thomas Pieters was able to remain patient and let his opponents make mistakes. The day was difficult for the Scotsman and the Irishman who both returned cards of 77 (+5). Thomas Pieters was able to control his game with a birdie, a bogey and sixteen pars, resisting the charge of his pursuers. He thus won his first Rolex Series and rejoined the world top 50: he is 31st.

Our blues

Seven French people were present this week in Abu Dhabi and four of them passed the Cut.

The fine performance of the week is to be attributed to Cannes resident Victor Dubuisson, he finished fourth on the Yas Links. After cards of 70 (-2) and 72 (PAR) in the first rounds, he returned two 69 (-3) over the weekend to sign his best result in the Rolex Series since the Nedbank Golf Challenge in 2017. “I think to have played very intelligently, and I had the chance to put in two long putts, those which make the difference to be at the top of the table. It had been two and a half months since I had played in a tournament, and starting with a Rolex Series is not easy, so I'm really happy”, comment by Victor Dubuisson collected by Golf+.

Romain Langasque begins his season, also with a very good week and a top 15. He makes cards of 72-73-67-71 and ranks 12th at -5. Romain Langasque performs once again in Abu Dhabi, he who finished 16th in 2021.

Julien Brun, despite a delicate moving day, signs a top 25 in this Rolex Series. He even slipped to the forefront after two rounds signing the best card on Friday, with a 69 (-3) under the storm. With his cards of 69-69-77-70, he finished 25th at -3.

Victor Perez, after a fiery start in the first round, -7 after seven holes, will have had more difficulty over the rest of the tournament and especially during the weekend. His heavy 78 (+6) drops him to 58th place in the tournament, at +3 total.

To find the complete leaderboard of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship: click here.

By Baptiste Laurensou.