Should Hatton repeat his Abu Dhabi victory of 2021 and then prevail in the curtain-closing DP World Tour Championship at the Earth Course, then McIlroy would need two runner-up placings for the magnificent septet. If that sounds an unlikely prediction of events then consider that the Race to Dubai points distribution tumbles quickly and Hatton could post a win and a top five and McIlroy would not have to play too poorly to succumb. Two average top 10s would not see him home.
That is why Hatton ventured to this desert knowing that his thirst for a first order of merit could still be satisfied, despite jumping ship to the Saudi-funded dollarfest two years ago.
“It’s at the back of my mind, although with Rory up there you don’t get too carried away,” he told Telegraph Sport, after his six-under beginning left him two off a group sharing the lead, including his Ryder Cup team-mates Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry, with Rory firing a so-so 68.
“But no, if I could pull it off, I wouldn’t be embarrassed at all,” Hatton added. “I’ve supported the DP World Tour pretty well this year. I’ve played my fair share of events. I’ve played more than some of the other [Ryder Cup] guys who are on the PGA Tour. So yeah, if I ended up winning the Race to Dubai, I’d like to think that they would respect that achievement and the effort I’d put into it.”
Hatton is a popular character in the locker room, but no, not everyone would salute his glory. At 33 and in his prime, he made a choice to join LIV and could not be sure if this would ruin his chances of playing in the Ryder Cup and, indeed, of competing in these big events on the home circuit where he honed his talents as a prodigious winner.
However, at the time Hatton agreed to a reported $50m signing-on fee, it seemed that the game was on the brink of peace and unity. The PGA Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund (the Kingdom’s $900bn treasure trove that bankrolls LIV) had entered into their “framework agreement” just a few months before and as President Donald Trump said: “If I was a tour pro, I would take the money now when you can”.
Yet here we are, after more than two years and the negotiations have stalled and we are still in deadlock. Hatton, as well as Jon Rahm, took the gamble, but it seemingly would have backfired. Ostracisation.
Except it didn’t, because when the DP World Tour realised there was no resolution in sight, the powers-that-be decided to present Hatton and Rahm with an out when it came to the 2025 Ryder Cup.
