Paul Waring emerged as the champion at the incredibly competitive Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, securing a hefty $1.6m for his efforts. The 39-year-old Brit triumphed with a record-setting 61 at Yas Links on Friday, though he witnessed his substantial lead shrink due to a less impressive 73 on Saturday.

Facing jitters during his third round, Waring confessed, he showed immense composure with a flawless 66 in the finale to snatch victory at 24-under-par. Rory McIlroy joined by former Open champ Shane Lowry and Ryder Cup players Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, and Thorbjorn Olesen made sure to apply pressure in an enthralling last day.

However, Waring, whose sole prior DP World Tour win was over six years ago at the Nordea Masters, kept cool and nailed a critical birdie from afar at the 17th hole, wrapping up the tournament flawlessly.

Post-victory, an emotional Waring expressed, “It just means so much to so many other things that come with that win,” reflecting on the significance of the achievement which propels him to fifth in the Race to Dubai rankings and edges him closer to one of 10 coveted PGA Tour slots for 2025.

He admitted: “I’m a bit taken aback right now. The one on 17, I could just see it tracking in the whole way and just knew I was going to hole it. As soon as it left the blade, I knew it was in.

“I’ll be honest, legs were shaking a little bit over that last putt. I just wanted to make sure that nothing else could happen and great to roll that one in on the last as well.”

McIlroy was quick off the mark with birdies on four of his first six holes, while Waring responded promptly with consecutive gains at the start. The English duo of Matthew Jordan and Matt Wallace closed in, each securing an eagle at the seventh and 11th.

However, McIlroy missed a straightforward par putt at the seventh, as well as an eight-foot birdie chance later, causing his challenge to ultimately fall through.

Waring pulled off a great bunker shot that led to a gain at the seventh and snagged another birdie at the 10th to maintain distance from the contenders, even though he had botched opportunities at 13th and lipped out shortly after. After a shaky drive at the 15th demanded a scramble for par, former champ Hatton pushed forward, birdieing the concluding two to tie with Waring, who hadn’t been caught in two days, and setting the clubhouse bar at 22 under.

Paul Waring celebrated the biggest win of his career at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship (Altaf Qadri/AP) ( 

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Then, in a breathtaking moment, Waring dropped a 40-foot putt at the 17th and followed it with a textbook drive on the final hole; a three-wood carried just past the green led to a critical up-and-down, sealing his triumph. Hatton secured second place with an outstanding closing 64, leaving McIlroy, Olesen, and Wallace tied in third spot at 21 under, as McIlroy boosts his lead in the Race to Dubai ahead of its final week.

“I do feel in a good position,” he admitted. “I saw Thriston making a charge today, and I was keeping one eye on the leaderboard and looking at what he was doing. I saw he posted 20.”

He went on to stress the importance of every stroke: “Every shot counts at this moment in time, and I was glad to make the four at the last and at least give myself half a chance at this tournament this week, but also give myself a little bit more of a cushion going into Dubai next week as well.”