The 2024 Race to Dubai continued to provide intriguing storylines as new champions emerged on the DP World Tour during the Asian Swing.
While next week's U.S. PGA Championship is included as part of the Global Swing, points accrued in the four Major Championships do not count in the Swing rankings so the overall champion was confirmed at the conclusion of the Volvo China Open alongside several other rewards.
Here, we recap how the four counting events unfolded, what the Swing Champion earned as the key issues at stake were answered in China and offer a reminder of the timeline for the rest of the season.
Who won the Asian Swing?
With a third top-five finish in as many events at the weather-affected Volvo China Open, after earlier back-to-back runner-up finishes, Sebastian Söderberg topped the Asian Swing Rankings.
The Swede was a consistent force during the four counting events on the third of five Global Swings that form part of a new-look DP World Tour schedule.
As the champion, Söderberg earned a $200,000 bonus as a swing winner, is now exempt for each of the 'Back 9' events and secured one of three spots on offer into the field for the 2024 US PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club.
While disappointed to miss out on adding a second DP World Tour title to his name during the recent stretch of events, he is looking forward to making his third appearance in a Major - and first at the US PGA Championship - next week.
"Right now, it hurts a little bit not coming out on top here [in China], but I've been playing really good golf for the last four events," said the 33-year-old, who now sits fourth in the season-long Race to Dubai Rankings.
"I know the game is there, I just need to hit a few better shots towards the end sometimes. But you play to win."
Söderberg follows Rory McIlroy (International Swing) and Min Woo Lee (Opening Swing) as the third Swing champion in the first phase of the Race to Dubai schedule.
The Global Swings Champions so far this season 🏆 pic.twitter.com/IjJQwGgLN1
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) May 7, 2024
What else was decided in China?
The big winner in China was Adrian Otaegui. A bogey-free five-under-par 65 in the final round helped the Spaniard to his fifth DP World Tour title.
With it, he climbed 35 places on the Asian Swing rankings to third and claimed a prized spot in the field for the US PGA Championship.
"Playing some Majors this year was a big goal for me," reflected the Spaniard after he pipped Porsche Singapore Classic winner Jesper Svensson to third place in the standings.
- To view the final Asian Swing standings, click here.
Joining Söderberg and Otaegui at the second men's Major of the season will be Keita Nakajima, who did not play in China, after the Japanese won his maiden DP World Tour title earlier in the Swing in India.
Sebastian Söderberg, Keita Nakajima and Adrian Otaegui have gained special exemption to the 2024 U.S. PGA Championship after finishing in the Top 3 of the Asian Swing rankings ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/oyWhiOM8Ls
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) May 5, 2024
How did the Asian Swing unfold?
With just four counting events, DP World Tour newcomers and established figures were as ever under pressure to impress and mark their mark during the Asian Swing.
After a fine start to the campaign as a rookie, European Challenge Tour graduate Svensson won his first DP World Tour title with a play-off victory over Aphibarnrat at Laguna National Golf Resort Club in March.
In his 14th event on the DP World Tour, the Swede matched the course record with a closing 63 before extra holes were required as Aphibarnrat eagled the last in a dramatic climax to regulation play.
A week later, another first-time winner emerged as former amateur World Number One Nakajima went wire to wire to win the Hero Indian Open by a commanding four-shot margin.
After Scottie Scheffler underlined his status as the pre-tournament favourite with victory at the Masters Tournament, there was more Japanese success at the ISPS HANDA – CHAMPIONSHIP.
On home soil, Yuto Katsuragawa became the sixth Japanese winner in DP World Tour history and the third of the season, after Rikuya Hoshino won the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters during the International Swing.
And then, most recently, Otaegui made it two victories apiece for Europe and Asia during the Swing as he became the first Spaniard to win on the DP World Tour so far this season.
In the news: The best of the Asian Swing content
From enlightening post-round reflections in the popular Green Room to exclusive features with DP World Tour members, we have shortlisted some of our best reads and watches from the Asian Swing.
- WATCH: Todd Clements' honest assessment after first round in Singapore
- WATCH: Marcus 'The Bullet' Armitage on a bullet train
- WATCH: Rugby World Cup winners Tindall and McCaw take on Luck of the Draw challenge
- READ: Emergence of Japanese stars creating new legacy on the DP World Tour
- READ: Sam Bairstow finding his feet on DP World Tour after transition from successful amateur to professional
- READ: Visa error left Southgate stuck in Singapore and relying on YouTube to prepare for Hero Indian Open
What is still to come on the DP World Tour schedule?
While focus quickly switches to the upcoming US PGA Championship at Valhalla, ten years on from Rory McIlroy’s victory at the Kentucky-based venue, it won’t be long before matters return to Europe.
The European Swing, the penultimate of the five Global Swings, features six counting events either side of the U.S. Open midway through.
As with the four other Global Swings, the European Swing Champion will earn $200,000, qualify for each of the ‘Back 9’ events, while the leading member not already exempt will qualify into the next Rolex Series event, this being the Genesis Scottish Open.
To view the European Swing schedule in full, click here.
The Closing Swing then runs from July 2024 (Genesis Scottish Open) to August 2024 (Danish Golf Championship).
The second phase of the season, the 'Back 9', will then encompass nine of the DP World Tour’s most historic tournaments and national Opens and will run from August 2024 to October 2024.
The top 110 players on the Race to Dubai Rankings at the conclusion of this phase in October will earn their DP World Tour cards for 2025 while the top 70 qualify for Phase Three, the DP World Tour Play-Off.
This phase, running in November 2024, will comprise the two final Rolex Series events of the season: the Abu Dhabi Championship and the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.
