2009 European Tour

The 2009 European Tour was the 38th series of golf tournaments since the European Tour officially began in 1972. There were major changes for the 2009 season as the tour entered a partnership agreement with Dubai based Leisurecorp. The Order of Merit was renamed the Race to Dubai with the addition of a new season ending tournament, the Dubai World Championship, being contested by the leading 60 players after the penultimate event for a US$7.5 million prize fund and a US$7.5 million bonus pool.
The Race to Dubai was won by Lee Westwood, who finished as European number one for the second time. He won the season ending Dubai World Championship to overtake Rory McIlroy in the standings. Westwood was also named Golfer of the Year, with Chris Wood being named the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year, having recorded a 3rd-place finish in The Open Championship on his way to 44th on the end of season money list.
Major tournaments.
For a summary of the major tournaments and events of 2009, including the major championships and the World Golf Championships, see 2009 in golf.
Schedule.
The table below shows the 2009 season schedule, which began with five events in late 2008 and consisted of 54 official money tournaments. This was an increase of four from the previous year, although three events were ultimately cancelled, and included the four major championships and four World Golf Championships, which are also sanctioned by the PGA Tour. 27 events took place in Europe, 14 in Asia, 6 in the United States, 3 in South Africa and 3 in Australia.
Changes from the 2008 season included two new tournaments, the Moravia Silesia Open in the Czech Republic and the Dubai World Championship, the addition of the Singapore Open, and the return of the World Match Play Championship after being cancelled in 2008. In addition, as a result of plans to realign the schedule with the calendar year for 2010, the HSBC Champions, Hong Kong Open and the Australian Masters were held twice during the 2009 season. The HSBC Champions became a World Golf Championships event effective with its November 2009 edition.
In December 2008 the Indian Masters, scheduled for February, was cancelled due to fallout from the ongoing financial crisis, and then in January 2009 it was announced that the revival of the English Open, scheduled for August, would be postponed for at least two years after developers of the St. Mellion International Resort ran into financial difficulties. In May it was announced that due to lack of sponsorship the British Masters had also been dropped from the schedule, with the Austrian Open being rescheduled from June to take its place on the calendar in September.
Race to Dubai.
In 2009, the Order of Merit was rebranded as the Race To Dubai, with a bonus pool of $7.5 million (originally $10 million) to be distributed among the top 15 players at the end of the season, of which the winner received $1.5 million (originally $2 million). The new name reflects the addition of a new season ending tournament, the Dubai World Championship, held at the end of November in Dubai. The tournament also had a $7.5 million prize fund (originally $10 million), and was contested by the leading 60 players in the race following the seasons penultimate event, the Hong Kong Open. The winner of the Race To Dubai also receives a ten-year European Tour exemption, while the winner of the Dubai World Championship tournament receives a five-year European Tour exemption. The reduction in prize money, announced in September 2009, was due to the global economic downturn.
Final standings.
The following table shows the final Race to Dubai standings for 2009, including the top 15 players who qualified for the bonus pool.
Awards.
Golfer of the Month.
The winners of the European Tour Golfer of the Month Award were as follows: