2015 European Tour
| Duration | 4 December 2014 – 22 November 2015 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 48 |
| Most wins |  Rory McIlroy (3) Andy Sullivan (3) |
| Race to Dubai | Rory McIlroy |
| Golfer of the Year | Rory McIlroy |
| Players' Player of the Year | Rory McIlroy |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year |  An Byeong-hun |
| Graduate of the Year | An Byeong-hun |
← 2014 2016 → | |
The 2015 European Tour was the 44th season of the European Tour, the main professional golf tour in Europe since its inaugural season in 1972.
Changes for 2015
[edit]There were many changes from the previous season. There were six additions to the schedule, made up of four new tournaments: the True Thailand Classic, the Shenzhen International, the Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play, and the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open; the Hero Indian Open, which was co-sanctioned by the European Tour for the first time; and the return of the European Open, which was last played in 2009.[1]
Seven events were lost from the schedule: the Volvo World Match Play Championship and Volvo Golf Champions, as a result of Volvo reducing their sponsorship commitments;[2] the Nelson Mandela Championship; the NH Collection Open; The Championship at Laguna National; the Wales Open, as a 15-year deal with Celtic Manor Resort came to an end;[3] and the Perth International, which wasn't played in 2015 due to rescheduling from October to February.
In March, the tour confirmed that the British Masters, last held in 2008, was also being revived and added to the schedule.[4] Later in the month, the Madeira Islands Open was cancelled due to persistent heavy rain; it was later rescheduled to the end of July, opposite the Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play.[5]
Schedule
[edit]The following table lists official events during the 2015 season.[6]
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse | Winner[a] | OWGR points | Other tours[b] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Dec | Nedbank Golf Challenge | South Africa | US$6,500,000 | Danny Willett (2) | 38 | AFR | Limited-field event |
| 14 Dec | Alfred Dunhill Championship | South Africa | €1,500,000 |  Branden Grace (5) | 22 | AFR | |
| 11 Jan | South African Open Championship | South Africa | R14,000,000 | Andy Sullivan (1) | 32 | AFR[c] | |
| 18 Jan | Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship | UAE | US$2,700,000 |  Gary Stal (1) | 50 | ||
| 24 Jan | Commercial Bank Qatar Masters | Qatar | US$2,500,000 | Branden Grace (6) | 42 | ||
| 1 Feb | Omega Dubai Desert Classic | UAE | US$2,650,000 | Rory McIlroy (10) | 50 | ||
| 8 Feb | Maybank Malaysian Open | Malaysia | US$3,000,000 |  Anirban Lahiri (1) | 38 | ASA | |
| 15 Feb | True Thailand Classic | Thailand | US$2,000,000 |  Andrew Dodt (2) | 28 | ASA | New tournament |
| 22 Feb | Hero Indian Open | India | US$1,500,000 | Anirban Lahiri (2) | 19 | ASA | New to European Tour |
| 1 Mar | Joburg Open | South Africa | €1,300,000 | Andy Sullivan (2) | 19 | AFR | |
| 8 Mar | Africa Open | South Africa | R14,500,000 | Trevor Fisher Jnr (1) | 19 | AFR | |
| 8 Mar | WGC-Cadillac Championship | United States | US$9,250,000 |  Dustin Johnson (n/a) | 76 | World Golf Championship | |
| 15 Mar | Tshwane Open | South Africa | R18,500,000 | George Coetzee (2) | 19 | AFR | |
| 29 Mar | Trophée Hassan II | Morocco | €1,500,000 |  Richie Ramsay (3) | 24 | ||
| 12 Apr | Masters Tournament | United States | US$10,000,000 | Jordan Spieth (n/a) | 100 | Major championship | |
| 19 Apr | Shenzhen International | China | US$2,500,000 |  Kiradech Aphibarnrat (2) | 24 | New tournament | |
| 26 Apr | Volvo China Open | China | CN¥20,000,000 |  Wu Ashun (1) | 26 | ONE | |
| 3 May | WGC-Cadillac Match Play | United States | US$9,250,000 | Rory McIlroy (11) | 76 | World Golf Championship | |
| 10 May | AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open | Mauritius | €1,000,000 | George Coetzee (3) | 17 | AFR, ASA | New tournament |
| 17 May | Open de España | Spain | €1,500,000 | James Morrison (2) | 26 | ||
| 24 May | BMW PGA Championship | England | €5,000,000 | An Byeong-hun (1) | 64 | Flagship event | |
| 31 May | Dubai Duty Free Irish Open | Northern Ireland | €2,500,000 |  Søren Kjeldsen (4) | 48 | ||
| 7 Jun | Nordea Masters | Sweden | €1,500,000 |  Alex Norén (4) | 26 | ||
| 14 Jun | Lyoness Open | Austria | €1,500,000 | Chris Wood (2) | 24 | ||
| 21 Jun | U.S. Open | United States | US$9,000,000 | Jordan Spieth (n/a) | 100 | Major championship | |
| 28 Jun | BMW International Open | Germany | €2,000,000 |  Pablo Larrazábal (4) | 32 | ||
| 5 Jul | Alstom Open de France | France | €3,000,000 |  Bernd Wiesberger (3) | 36 | ||
| 12 Jul | Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open | Scotland | £3,250,000 | Rickie Fowler (n/a) | 50 | ||
| 20 Jul | The Open Championship | Scotland | £6,300,000 | Zach Johnson (n/a) | 100 | Major championship | |
| 26 Jul | Omega European Masters | Switzerland | €2,700,000 | Danny Willett (3) | 32 | ASA | |
| 2 Aug | Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play | Scotland | €1,000,000 | Kiradech Aphibarnrat (3) | 24 | New tournament Limited-field event | |
| 2 Aug[d] | Madeira Islands Open - Portugal - BPI | Portugal | €600,000 |  Roope Kakko (1) | 18 | CHA | |
| 9 Aug | WGC-Bridgestone Invitational | United States | US$9,250,000 |  Shane Lowry (3) | 74 | World Golf Championship | |
| 16 Aug | PGA Championship | United States | US$10,000,000 | Jason Day (n/a) | 100 | Major championship | |
| 23 Aug | Made in Denmark | Denmark | €1,500,000 | David Horsey (4) | 24 | ||
| 30 Aug | D+D Real Czech Masters | Czech Republic | €1,000,000 |  Thomas Pieters (1) | 24 | ||
| 6 Sep | M2M Russian Open | Russia | €1,000,000 | Lee Slattery (2) | 24 | ||
| 13 Sep | KLM Open | Netherlands | €1,800,000 | Thomas Pieters (2) | 24 | ||
| 20 Sep | Open d'Italia | Italy | €1,500,000 | Rikard Karlberg (1) | 24 | ||
| 27 Sep | Porsche European Open | Germany | €2,000,000 | Thongchai Jaidee (7) | 30 | ||
| 4 Oct | Alfred Dunhill Links Championship | Scotland | US$5,000,000 | Thorbjørn Olesen (3) | 44 | Pro-Am | |
| 11 Oct | British Masters | England | £3,000,000 | Matt Fitzpatrick (1) | 36 | ||
| 18 Oct | Portugal Masters | Portugal | €2,000,000 | Andy Sullivan (3) | 24 | ||
| 25 Oct | UBS Hong Kong Open | Hong Kong | US$2,000,000 | Justin Rose (8) | 34 | ASA | |
| 1 Nov | Turkish Airlines Open | Turkey | US$7,000,000 | Victor Dubuisson (2) | 44 | Race to Dubai finals series | |
| 8 Nov | WGC-HSBC Champions | China | US$8,500,000 | Russell Knox (1) | 66 | World Golf Championship Race to Dubai finals series | |
| 15 Nov | BMW Masters | China | US$7,000,000 | Kristoffer Broberg (1) | 50 | Race to Dubai finals series | |
| 22 Nov | DP World Tour Championship, Dubai | UAE | US$8,000,000 | Rory McIlroy (12) | 52 | Race to Dubai finals series |
Location of tournaments
[edit]     &   Location of official tournaments of the 2015 European Tour in Europe.  Major Championship Flagship event Final Series event Regular event | .svg)    Location of official tournaments of the 2015 European Tour outside Europe. Major Championship World Golf Championship Final Series event Regular event
|
Race to Dubai
[edit]The Race to Dubai was based on tournament results during the season, calculated using a points-based system.[7][8][9]
| Pos. | Player | Majors | WGCs | Flagship event and R2D finals series[e] | Top 10s in other ET events | Tmts | Points and money[f] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mas | USO | Opn | PGA | WGC Cad | WGC MP | WGC Inv | WGC Cha | BMW PGA | Tur | BMW Mas | DPW TC | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Total points | Bon. ($) | FS bonus ($) | |||||||||
| 1 | McIlroy | 4th | T9 | • | • | T9 | 1st | • | T11 | CUT | T6 | • | 1st | 2nd | 1st | 12 | 4,727,253 | 1,250,000 | 625,000 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Willett | T38 | CUT | T6 | T54 | T12 | 3rd | T17 | T3 | T38 | T11 | T28 | T4 | 1st | T4 | T6 | 1st | T3 | 23 | 3,670,310 | 800,000 | 200,000 | |||||||||
| 3 | Grace | CUT | T4 | T20 | 3rd | 54th | T9 | T17 | T5 | T11 | • | T22 | 3rd | 1st | 1st | 18 | 3,056,948 | 530,000 | 132,500 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Rose | T2 | T27 | T6 | 4th | 55th | T17 | T3 | • | T38 | • | T7 | T22 | 1st | 14 | 2,827,024 | 400,000 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | Lowry | CUT | T9 | CUT | CUT | T17 | T34 | 1st | T68 | T6 | 8th | T56 | T48 | T2 | 18 | 2,729,144 | 350,000 | 87,500 | |||||||||||||
| 6 | Oosthuizen | T19 | T2 | T2 | T30 | 6th | T5 | T42 | T44 | • | • | T37 | T38 | T7 | 2nd | 12 | 2,711,457 | 300,000 | 45,000 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | An | • | CUT | CUT | CUT | • | • | T57 | T19 | 1st | 4th | T3 | T4 | T5 | T7 | T8 | 26 | 2,417,356 | 250,000 | 37,500 | |||||||||||
| 8 | Sullivan | • | CUT | T30 | CUT | • | T34 | • | T64 | 17th | T60 | T17 | 2nd | 1st | T4 | 1st | T6 | T6 | 1st | 28 | 2,263,573 | 200,000 | 30,000 | ||||||||
| 9 | Wiesberger | T22 | CUT | T68 | CUT | T31 | T34 | T25 | T17 | CUT | T50 | T24 | T17 | T6 | 3rd | T4 | 2nd | T2 | 1st | T4 | 25 | 2,163,181 | 170,000 | 25,500 | |||||||
| 10 | Jaidee | 55th | CUT | T65 | CUT | 69th | T34 | T57 | T11 | T2 | T26 | T3 | T31 | T7 | T2 | T10 | 1st | 25 | 2,150,076 | 150,000 | 22,500 | ||||||||||
| 11 | Dubuisson | CUT | CUT | CUT | T18 | T62 | T52 | T50 | • | T63 | 1st | T17 | T13 | T4 | T10 | 21 | 2,132,753 | 140,000 | 14,000 | ||||||||||||
| 12 | Fitzpatrick | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | T7 | • | T26 | T13 | T4 | T5 | T8 | T3 | 2nd | 3rd | T3 | 1st | T3 | 32 | 2,094,933 | 130,000 | 13,000 | ||||||
| 13 | Aphibarnrat | • | • | CUT | T68 | • | • | • | T30 | T27 | 3rd | T31 | T22 | 5th | T4 | 1st | T4 | 1st | T4 | T5 | 25 | 2,055,618 | 120,000 | 12,000 | |||||||
| 14 | Broberg | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | CUT | T50 | 1st | T17 | T10 | T6 | T10 | T2 | T8 | 32 | 2,003,321 | 110,000 | 11,000 | |||||||||
| 15 | Kjeldsen | • | • | CUT | CUT | • | • | T12 | T46 | T18 | T11 | T9 | T10 | T9 | 1st | 2nd | T2 | T9 | T9 | T2 | 31 | 1,996,684 | 100,000 | 10,000 | |||||||
Win
Top 10
Made cut
Missed cut
• Did not play
Awards
[edit]| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| Golfer of the Year | Rory McIlroy | [12] |
| Players' Player of the Year | Rory McIlroy | [13] |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | An Byeong-hun | [14] |
| Graduate of the Year | An Byeong-hun | [14] |
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of European Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for European Tour members.
- ^ AFR − Sunshine Tour; ANZ − PGA Tour of Australasia; ASA − Asian Tour; CHA − Challenge Tour; ONE − OneAsia Tour.
- ^ Sunshine Tour flagship event
- ^ Rescheduled due to persistent bad weather.
- ^ The WGC-HSBC Champions was also a Race to Dubai finals series event.
- ^ In addition to tournament prize money, the top 15 point scorers received a share of a $5m bonus pool. Those inside the top 15 who participated in at least 3 of the 4 Final Series events received an additional shared of a $1,365,500 bonus pool.[10][11]
- ^ Having only played two Race to Dubai finals series events, Rose was not eligible for the additional finals series bonus.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ "European Tour 2015: New events in Scotland, Germany, Thailand". BBC Sport. 23 November 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
- ^ "European Tour: Volvo withdraw sponsorship of two events". Sky Sports. 8 October 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
- ^ Corrigan, James (19 September 2014). "Wales Open becomes latest professional tournament to bite the dust after being handed last rites by Celtic Manor". The Telegraph. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
- ^ "European Tour: British Masters returns after seven-year absence". BBC Sport. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
- ^ Lavner, Ryan (24 March 2015). "Canceled Euro Tour event rescheduled for July". Golf Channel. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
- ^ "2015 Tournament schedule". European Tour. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- ^ "New points system announced for European Tour Race to Dubai in 2015". Sky Sports. 2 December 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
- ^ "Golf-Race to Dubai rankings". Reuters. 23 November 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
- ^ Gittings, Paul (23 November 2015). "DP World Tour Championship: Rory McIlroy wins to wrap up Race to Dubai". CNN. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- ^ "Race to Dubai enhanced by additional bonus pool scheme". European Tour. 6 July 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- ^ a b "The Race to Dubai 2015". Golf Punk. 29 October 2015. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
This is to allow for the operation of an additional bonus scheme that will be paid out only to those players who participate in 3 out of 4 of the Final Series events...
- ^ Stafford, Ali (15 December 2015). "Rory McIlroy named European Tour Golfer of the Year for 2015". Sky Sports. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ "McIlroy gunning for more glory". European Tour. 18 May 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
The Northern Irishman overcame an injury-plagued 2015 season to win his third Harry Vardon Trophy and was then honoured by his peers as he was voted Players' Player of the year for the second season in succession.
- ^ a b McGarr, Rob (4 December 2015). "Byeong Hun An is the European Tour Rookie of the Year". Today's Golfer. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
Much like American Brooks Koepka last year, An's remarkable rise through The European Tour's developmental system was recognised by a second prestigious title, the Graduate of the Year Award, given to the highest-ranked player in The Race to Dubai to have graduated directly from the Challenge Tour the previous season.