John Rahm completed a winning return to the European tour as he held off Tyrrell Hatton by two strokes on Sunday to win the Abu Dhabi Championship.
The Spaniard was playing in his first event on the DP Tour since leaving the bankrupt LIV Golf tour last month.
"It means a lot," Rahm, who turns 32 on Tuesday, said. "I'm almost not letting myself believe it because it's been quite a while since I played good in a DP World Tour event and my last showing, if we don't count withdrawals, I think I finished last.
"So last to first, it's a pretty good feeling."
"From last to first is a pretty good feeling" 🔥 Jon Rahm after claiming his 11th DP World Tour win in Abu Dhabi 🎙️ “It means a lot. Still almost not letting myself believe it. It's been quite a while since I've played good in a DP World Tour event. And in my last showing, if you don't count the withdrawals, I think I finished last. So, from last to first is a pretty good feeling. "As far as I'm concerned, except the shot on 17, I played a pretty flawless back nine. It was really, really solid. Never in danger of making a bogey except for one hole. A lot of them (shots) deserve a lot of credit, but definitely that second one on 15. That 6-iron is contender for shot of the year for me. “After everything that's gone on and some poor play and some battles, mentally, with a lot of the noise, to come back out after a little bit of rest and having a new addition to the family, it's quite special. I only wish they were here to celebrate with me." #AbuDhabiChamps | #RolexSeries
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 8, 2026
Rahm started the day one shot ahead of Englishman Hatton and Italian Francesco Laporta, with Rory McIlroy another shot back.
Rahm had three birdies going out and three more coming home. After a bogey on the third, he did not drop another stroke, though he had a scare.
"As far as I'm concerned, apart from the tee-shot at 17 it was a pretty flawless back nine. It was really, really solid," he said.
"After everything that's gone on and some poor play, battles mentally with the noise, to come back out after a little bit of rest and having a new addition to the family, it's special," said Rahm, who in October announced the birth of his fourth child.
After briefly surrendering the lead after McIlroy started with a birdie and an eagle, Rahm regained it on the third hole and never surrendered it though he had to share it for a while.
He was in a four-way tie with Laporta, McIlroy and Hatton as late as the 11th hole.
Laporta dropped three shots on the next two holes and Rahm pulled clear with birdies on 12 and 15 for a final round of 67 and 23-under-par total of 265.
The moment Jon Rahm claimed his 11th DP World Tour win at the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship 🏆 #AbuDhabiChamps | #RolexSeries https://t.co/JjwILbywwX
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 8, 2026
Hatton shot a 68 to finish two shots back and seal his place at next week's World Tour Championship in Dubai.
McIlroy was two shots further back to rise to second in the DP rankings, behind Eugenio Chacarra, who finished 22nd, in a bid for a record-equalling eighth Harry Vardon Trophy, the traditional award for the top player on the European tour.
"It would have been great to win this week and give myself not as much of a deficit or even a lead but still feel like I'm right in there with a great chance." Rory McIlroy reflects on his third-place finish after coming up short in the final round 🎙️ "It was sort of a week where I felt like I had my chances. Especially today, birdieing 10 and 11 to get tied for the lead, and then I had two good chances, 12 and 13, and didn't make those. Had to scramble for par on 14. And then, yeah, I just couldn't keep my momentum going. "But it was a good week. I saw some encouraging signs in the game. I'm going to be in that final group going out on Thursday next week. So, I obviously would have loved to have won the tournament, but enough positive signs to feel good about going into next week. "It's a pretty familiar spot for me going into The DP World Tour Championship, and I'm excited for it. That was the goal coming into these two weeks to try to catch Eugenio [Chacarra] and Patrick [Reed] and try to win The Race to Dubai again." #AbuDhabiChamps | #RolexSeries
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 8, 2026
Rahm rises to the top at the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship 🇦🇪 #AbuDhabiChamps | #RolexSeries https://t.co/izAmcZAx6R
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 8, 2026