DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Henrik Stenson won the Race to Dubai title for the second time in four years on Sunday, and Matthew Fitzpatrick claimed the biggest victory of his short career at the World Tour Championship.

Fourth-ranked Stenson shot 7-under 65 in the final round on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates to stay ahead of his rivals in the year-long race. The Swede earned a bonus of $1.25 million as the European Tour’s top player.

The 40-year-old Stenson, who also won the Race to Dubai in 2013, ended Sunday on 12-under 276 in a four-way tie for ninth, which included Rory McIlroy (65).

“I’ve always thought it was going to be hard to top 2013, but I think I’ve done that this year,” said British Open champion Stenson. “Maybe not to the level of golf over six months, but certainly with the highlights of winning the Open, (silver at) the Olympics and taking the Race to Dubai again.”

Stenson’s closest rival in the Race to Dubai, Masters champion Danny Willett, remained second after finishing tied 50th in the tournament with a 70, some 11 shots adrift of Stenson.

Fitzpatrick, who earned his card exactly two years ago, shot 5-under 67 to finish on 17-under 271. The 22-year-old Englishman finished one stroke ahead of compatriot Tyrrell Hatton (68), who had a bogey on the final hole after his tee shot trickled into the stream that bisects the fairway.

“I love playing golf obviously, but it’s been a long year for me,” said Fitzpatrick, who is expected to move into the top 30 from his current 51st ranking. “This means the world … For me to win on the final week of the year is special.”

Fitzpatrick survived a scare on the 15th hole when he pulled his tee shot into thick trees, but the ball somehow kicked back into the rough and he made par from there.

South African Charl Schwartzel (67) was two shots further behind in third.

Overnight leader, France’s Victor Dubuisson (72), was among those tied fourth at 275. That group included Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger (68), Italian Francesco Molinari (70), Dane Soren Kjeldsen (68) and Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts (71).

The Race to Dubai did not need any major calculations when leader Stenson finished best among the four players in with a chance.

His score of 65 on Sunday tied McIlroy but left behind his two closest rivals, Willett and Sweden’s Alex Noren.

Noren could not reproduce the form that saw him win last week in South Africa which included a sensational 9-under 63. He finished with a double bogey on the 18th for a round of 71, which put him four behind Stenson.

Stenson started the day tied with McIlroy on 5-under, and the two were paired together. Between them, they had 15 birdies, three bogeys and one eagle – McIlroy on the par-5 No. 7.

For Stenson, “it’s been a great year, the best year of my career.”

Stenson’s first victory this season came as late as June, when he won the BMW International Open in Munich with a three-stroke victory. He then went toe-to-toe with Phil Mickelson at the Open, with Stenson shooting the lowest ever final round (63) by a winner.

SYDNEY, Australia – Jordan Spieth believes his victory at the Australian Open on Sunday will “do wonders” for his career, just as it did when he won the tournament for the first time in 2014.

Spieth sank a 10-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to beat local hopes Cameron Smith and Ashley Hall at Royal Sydney.

Former top-ranked Spieth forced the three-way playoff after sinking another clutch par putt on the 18th hole for a 3-under 69. He joined Smith (66) and Hall (66) at 12-under 276 after 72 holes.

For Spieth, it was more than winning the tournament for a second time.

“The way we played the playoff, I think is going to do wonders for me,” Spieth said. “I’ve been in a little bit of stall hitting shots when they mattered … To hit those two shots in there, right where I wanted to hit them and then make the putt is really big going forward.”

The American added his name to an elite list of multiple winners at the Australian Open, including Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Greg Norman. Spieth improved his record to two wins and a runner-up finish in 2015 from three appearances at the Australian Open.

Four players held the lead at various times on a dramatic final day, including Spieth, who.

On the playoff hole – the 18th – Spieth put his approach to within 10 feet before Hall stepped up the pressure by knocking his to less than 8 feet.

The 23-year-old Spieth then showed the composure that won him the Masters and U.S. Open titles last year when he calmly sank his putt while Hall pushed his birdie attempt right of the cup.

Smith and Hall had some consolation as they secured starts at next year’s British Open at Royal Birkdale, as did two-time Australian Open champion Aaron Baddeley, who finished in a five-way tie for fourth at 10 under.

“I had a chance and that’s all I can ask for,” Hall said. “I was pretty close to getting a job in a couple weeks, no idea what. … I’ve got a couple young kids, so I have to keep money flowing in.”

“I’m going to keep playing golf now,” he added. “Especially now, I’ve got a pretty important tournament to play in July.”

Baddeley closed with a 1-under 71 and edged out Rod Pampling (70), Jason Scrivener (69), Ryan Fox (71) and third-round leader Geoff Ogilvy (73) for the spot at the British Open by virtue of his superior world ranking.

Ogilvy started the day with a two-stroke lead before Spieth made two birdies on his first two holes to go in front.

Ogilvy then chipped in for an eagle on the seventh hole to restore a two-shot margin and extended the lead to three shots before his round unraveled with a bogey on the par-4 15th and a double-bogey on the par-5 16th.

The former U.S. Open champion finished with a 73.

After Spieth’s 2014 victory, he went on in subsequent months to win the Masters and the U.S. Open, then missed the playoff at the British Open by a shot before finishing second to Jason Day at the PGA Championship.

“The best I ever hit it … was actually the week after I played the Australian Open in 2014,” Spieth said. “I hit the ball well here, played a fantastic final round and went on and took that victory into my best ball-striking week I’ve ever had as a golfer at Tiger’s event in Orlando. And I hope to do the same here.”

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – The largest PGA Tour playoff of the year at the RSM Classic didn’t finish before darkness Sunday, and it won’t include Billy Horschel when it resumes.

Horschel, the highest-ranked player in the five-man playoff at Sea Island, burned the edge of the cup with his birdie putt at No. 18 on the first playoff hole. Stepping over a routine tap-in from 2 feet, he blocked it to the right and was eliminated.

“I took my time and just blocked it,” Horschel said.

Mackenzie Hughes, the Canadian trying to become the first rookie to go wire-to-wire in 20 years, had a 10-foot birdie putt on No. 18 on the second extra hole and it turned away to the left. It already was plenty dark, and there was no chance to play another hole.

He can’t believe it didn’t fall.#QuickHits https://t.co/enaRFkf6VV

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 20, 2016

Hughes, from Dundas, Ont., Blayne Barber, Camilo Villegas and Henrik Norlander were to return at 8 a.m. on Monday to finish the final PGA Tour event of the year.

So much is at stake for all of them, starting with a trip to the Masters.

Norlander and Villegas don’t have full status on the PGA Tour this year – Norlander received a sponsor’s exemption – and a victory would take care of that. Hughes began his rookie season just six weeks ago and has a honeymoon planned in the off-season. Barber is going for his first PGA Tour victory.

All of them had their chances, and none had any real regrets over the final hour.

Hughes narrowly missed birdie chances on the 15th and 16th holes, but holed a 5-foot par putt on the 18th in regulation for a 1-under 69 to join the playoff.

Norlander, who closed with a 65, stuffed a 9-iron into 3 feet on the 18th in regulation and was the first to reach 17-under 265. Barber ran off back-to-back birdies on the back nine, and he had a 12-foot birdie attempt at the 18th that he missed on the low side. He shot a 66.

Villegas played the best coming down the stretch. Two shots behind with three to play, the Colombian hit an aggressive drive on the par-4 16th that set up wedge for a short birdie, then holed an 18-foot birdie putt from the fringe on the par-3 17th to tie for the lead. He finished with a 6-foot par on the 18th for a 68.

It was the largest playoff on the PGA Tour since Alex Cejka won a five-man playoff in Puerto Rico in 2015.

No one else was close to joining the playoff. Jim Furyk had a 67 and was part of a large group at 14-under 268. That included C.T. Pan of Taiwan, who faced a longer day than even the players who had to return Monday.

Pan left after the tournament to catch a flight from Savannah to New York, then New York to Hong Kong, and then a connection to Melbourne where he was to arrive Tuesday night in Australia for the World Cup.

Full round highlights:

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – One bad decision cost Mackenzie Hughes his three-shot lead in the RSM Classic.

Remarkable poise and a pure putting stroke for the Canadian rookie left him one round away from a wire-to-wire victory at Sea Island.

Hughes, from Dundas, Ont., bounced back from his blunder with a tough par save, three birdies and a 2-under 68 that gave him a one-shot lead over Billy Horschel, Camilo Villegas and C.T. Pan going into the final round expected to feature more strong wind.

“Everyone’s going to be fighting the same kind of nerves trying to win, and hopefully, I’ll be on top again tomorrow,” Hughes said.

Hughes was sailing along on the Seaside course Saturday, bogey-free for the first 46 holes of the tournament, when he tried to do too much from an awkward lie in a fairway bunker on the 11th hole instead of pitching back to the fairway. His feet slipped in the sand on his first shot, and it stayed in the bunker in a worse lie. The next shot was so fat it only went about 40 yards into another bunker. And then he three-putted from 50 feet and his lead had vanished.

“It was almost like I had been punched in the face there, making a triple after everything seemed to be going pretty smoothly,” Hughes said.

He kept enough of senses to remind himself that he was still tied for the lead in only his fifth event of his rookie season, and there was plenty of golf left. What followed was his most important shot of the week, a super pitch up a steep slope to a back pin to tap-in range to save par, and then three birdies over the next four holes.

“That pitch on 12 was probably my shot of the day,” he said. “Because if I follow that up with a bogey, the wheels start to come off even more.”

Hughes was at 16-under 196.

Horschel, who hasn’t won since the Tour Championship two years ago when he captured the FedEx Cup, holed a 10-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole of the Seaside course at Sea Island for a 65. Villegas overcame a double bogey early in his round and finished with four straight birdies for a 64.

Joining them at 15-under 197 was another PGA Tour rookie, Pan of Taiwan. He shot a 67 playing in the final group.

More than costing Hughes a big lead, that triple bogey made the final round of the year on the PGA Tour far more bunched than it needed to be. Ten players were within four shots of the lead, a group that included Charles Howell III (13-under 199) and Stewart Cink (12-under 200).

Horschel has slipped to No. 76 in the world since his big FedEx Cup run in 2014. He has worked hard on his short game and feels that turning around, and he believes the windy conditions after two days of calm might have helped someone who hits the ball as crisply as he does.

He thinks experience will play a role, too.

“There’s some young guys up there on the leaderboard that haven’t been in … obviously, they’ve won other times, but out on the PGA Tour it’s a little bit different. But it all depends on what kind of conditions we get. I would to have similar conditions today because I think the better player shows up in these conditions.”

Villegas also has gone two years without a victory, and he lost his card this year and only got into the tournament as a past champion. One week could change everything.

“Let me tell you something, it’s 18 more holes of golf. I’m feeling good,” Villegas said. “I’ve been a lot more comfortable than I have been. I think it’s all about having the mind in the right place. My shots when I’m calm out there are pretty good and hopefully we can accomplish that tomorrow. I think the leaderboard is jam-packed as always. We’re playing the PGA Tour, the best players in the world, but I’ve got to wake up tomorrow believing I can do it.”

Pan, a former No. 1 amateur when he was at Washington, went from four shots behind to a one-shot lead in two holes when he rolled in a pair of birdies and Hughes made a mess of the 11th hole. Pan dropped a shot on the next hole with a wild tee shot that the wind made look worse, but he was never out of position the rest of the way.

Hughes, who got married in his only week off this fall, has led at Sea Island from his opening 61 on the Seaside course. He will try to join Cody Gribble as PGA Tour rookies to win in the fall portion of the season, with one difference. This victory earns a spot in the Masters.

NAPLES, Fla. – Lydia Ko and Ariya Jutanugarn will settle the LPGA Tour’s biggest awards and prizes Sunday at Tiburon. They’re chasing Charley Hull in the CME Group Tour Championship.

“I think it’s going to be a very interesting Sunday,” Ko said Saturday after dropping into a tie for fourth in the season finale.

Ko needs a victory to top Jutanugarn in the player of the year race, and also would take the season points title and $1 million CME Globe bonus with a win. Ko also is fighting Jutanugarn for the money title and Chun for the Vare Trophy for the lowest scoring average.

“It’s simple: I got win to get it.” Ko said. “That’s why no matter what position I am, I’m the chaser. So, I think that almost puts less pressure on me, where I’m not thinking about where I am exactly. I’m trying to make as many birdies as I can and give myself those opportunities.”

Hull birdied all four par-5 holes in a bogey-free 6-under 66 on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead over Brittany Lincicome (66) and So Yeon Ryu (69) and two-stroke advantage over Ko (73), Jutanugarn (65), Chun (68), Jennifer Song (66) and Lizette Salas (67).

“Just kind of kept in the zone,” Hull said. “I felt like I hit it pretty decent, better than I did yesterday. I holed a few putts and got up-and-down when I needed to. … I’m happy with my score and looking forward to tomorrow.”

The 20-year-old Hull, from England, had a 13-under 203 total. She’s winless on the tour.

“It was scoreable out there,” Hull said. “I don’t understand why everyone has dropped back. Obviously, it is tricky little golf course on some shots, like 18. You’ve got a good finishing hole.”

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., was tied for 34th at 3 under after a 69. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp had a 72 and was tied for 47th at 1 over.

The top-ranked Ko began the day with a three-shot lead after shooting a 63 on Friday.

“I just got to stay patient.” The 19-year-old New Zealander said. “I don’t think like I did something horribly or drastically different. Probably those little things. If you tug it a bit on a right-to-left wind, for example, on the 18th hole, it’s going to look like much more of that draw or pull.”

Jutanugarn had seven birdies in a bogey-free round.

“I just try to focus shot by shot, not think about outcome and not think about like too much future,” Jutanugarn said. “I’m ready to have fun and be happy on the course. I don’t know I can win or not, but I’m going to do my best.”

The 20-year-old Thai star leads the tour with five victories, one more than Ko.

“This year is like great for me,” Jutanugarn said. “I know tomorrow going to be a lot of pressure, but I’m just going to do my best and whatever going to happen I still love my year this year.”

First-round leader Shanshan Feng was tied for 12th at 8 under after a 69. The Chinese star is coming off consecutive victories in Malaysia and Japan.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Five tournaments into his rookie season on the PGA Tour, Mackenzie Hughes has the 36-hole lead at Sea Island and expects a few nerves.

That weekend he spent with Phil Mickelson should at least help.

The 25-year-old from Dundas, Ont., had another bogey-free round Friday and took care of the par 5s on the Plantation Course for a 5-under 67, giving him a two-shot lead over C.T. Pan going into the weekend of the RSM Classic, the final PGA Tour event of the year.

Hughes at was at 14-under 128.

Pan also is a rookie, and perhaps they can take inspiration from rookie Cody Gribble winning in Mississippi three weeks ago. Hughes and Pan both spent last year on the Web.com Tour to earn their cards.

“There’s going to be nerves tomorrow, and I’m going to be a little jittery starting out, but that’s completely natural,” Hughes said. “But I just think guys come off the Web.com Tour that … for example, I won in Missouri and I feel like the win translates to being able to win out here. The margin is so small that the things I did on that weekend to win that tournament are the same things I’ll have to do Saturday and Sunday.”

Hughes started his rookie season in the Safeway Open, made the cut and wound up in the same group with Mickelson, who attracted the largest gallery.

“The atmosphere was a dream start for me,” Hughes said. “We played the first day, and I had a nine-footer on 19 for par to make par and stay tied with him. I was so pumped that I made it because I got one more round out of it. He was a super nice guy, really welcoming. It was a nice way to break yourself in.”

There wasn’t much of a gallery at Sea Island on another pristine day for scoring, so ideal that the cut came at 5-under par. That probably won’t change for the weekend, especially with tournament host Davis Love III and Sea Island neighbours Zach Johnson and Matt Kuchar among those missing the cut.

Even so, it was an experience that could come in handy Hughes.

“Being with him for two days and with his galleries and all the distractions going on there, that’s probably as good a preparation as you would have for tomorrow and Sunday,” Hughes said. “There was so much learning going on that weekend that I’ll be able to apply.”

It was the lowest cut on the PGA Tour since 5 under at the 2015 Zurich Classic.

Hughes opened with a 9-under 61 on the Seaside course at Sea Island, while he didn’t hit the ball as cleanly over at Plantation, he had few complaints. He picked up three of his birdies at the par 5s, even on the 18th when he found a fairway bunker off the tee and had to lay up. He hit wedge to eight feet and made the putt.

“Today was definitely a little more work,” Hughes said, though he quickly added that 67 was “no slouch of a score and I would take two more of those in a heartbeat.”

Hughes and Pan, who shot a 64 at Seaside, played together on the Canadian Tour two years ago, and then all last year on the Web.com Tour. Pan had a brief stay atop the world amateur ranking in 2013 when he won eight times at Washington, and he made the cut as an amateur at the 2015 U.S. Open at Chambers Bay.

They will be joined in the final group by Hudson Swafford, who lives at Sea Island and shot a 67 on the Plantation. Swafford was three shots behind, along with Chad Campbell, Chesson Hadley and Blayne Barber.

“It should be fun,” Pan said. “We played on the Canadian tour last year, and then we played the Web.com Tour this year and now we are both on the PGA Tour. So it’s exciting to see both of us play well out there, because it’s a dream come true for both of us.”

That much was clear when Hughes came into the media centre for an interview. He left his seat, walked to the back of the room and handed his phone to his mother to take a picture. It was that kind of moment for him.

Even with a two-shot lead, however, the conditions have been such that low scores are available to anyone at any time. Twenty-five players were separated by just five shots with two more rounds to play.

That group includes Jim Furyk, Stewart Cink. Four shots behind was Jonathan Byrd, a five-time PGA Tour winner who spent last year on the Web.com Tour and still doesn’t have full status. He is playing this week on a sponsor’s exemption and wants to make the most out of limited chances like this.

NAPLES, Fla. – Lydia Ko shot a tournament-record 10-under 62 on Friday to take a three-stroke lead in the CME Group Tour Championship, putting the top-ranked New Zealander in position to win the player of the year award with a victory Sunday.

Ko birdied four of the first six holes and had seven birdies and a bogey on the back nine to get to 12-under 132 in the season finale. Ryann O’Toole (67) and So Yeon Ryu (68) were tied for second, and Sei Young Kim (68) and Beatriz Recari (68) followed at 8 under.

“Going into today definitely my goal wasn’t the 62,” said Ko, the 2014 winner at Tiburon Golf Club. “The first three holes made great birdies. I was going in with really good momentum, and I was able to carry that for pretty much the rest of my round. I think I was putting good, so if I was within a distance that I felt comfortable I felt like, ‘Hey, I could hole this.”’

Ko needs a victory to top Ariya Jutanugarn in the player of the year race, and also would take the season points title and $1 million bonus with a win. The points in the CME Globe standings were reset for the finale, so Ko, Jutanugarn and Brooke Henderson all control their destinies.

“I think the big key mindset for me is that I’ve been not really thinking about everything that could happen,” Ko said. “For me to win player the year I know I need to win this championship. A lot of things come with that. So to me, it’s more important to finish off my season strong. I think that way I don’t feel more pressure about everything that’s going on.”

Ko is fighting Jutanugarn for the money title and In Gee Chun for the Vare Trophy for the lowest scoring average. Jutanugarn, the tour victory leader with five, was tied for 19th at 4 under after a 68.

“I started to make some putts,” Jutanugarn said. “Today was pretty good day for me.”

Chun (69) was tied for sixth at 7 under, and Henderson (72) was tied for 38th at even par.

The 62 matched Ko’s lowest score of the season, shot in the second round of her Walmart NW Arkansas victory in June. She has four victories this year.

“Going into today, I just wanted to focus on my game,” Ko said. “I knew I had a great pairing Eun Hee (Ji) and Mi Hyang (Lee). Mi Hyang said, ‘Hey, whenever you play with us you seem to play well.’ Maybe it’s the good vibes I got from them. Obviously, it’s a great round. It’s a better position, even better than I could have imagined. Even on the weekend I just got to focus and keep playing great.”

Ko is using Gary Matthews as her caddie for the second straight event. She fired Jason Hamilton – now with Ha Na Jang – and used Sargunan Suntharaj in Malaysia, then teamed with Matthews in Japan.

She worked with instructor David Leadbetter on the range late Thursday.

“It was just more about my iron play,” Ko said. “I hit my drives really well yesterday. My irons were kind of on and off. Not that many where I was looking for birdies. So, it was just very simple. Just in the takeaway where I wasn’t going too out. It’s something that you normally do, but especially when you’re hitting it good, it’s more about the basics and the little things.”

O’Toole had six birdies and a bogey.

“I think usually my drives are my strong point,” O’Toole said. “Right now I’m hitting these little cuts that aren’t going as far as they could. Definitely could give me shorter irons in. But I’m striking my irons well, putting myself in position.”

Ryu earned a spot in the final group Saturday with friend Ko.

“It’s think it’s definitely going to be really fun to competing with world No. 1 player,” Ryu said. “She is not only great player, she’s really great person. … She loves food like me, so we just talk a lot of thing about food when we are on the golf course.”

First-round leader Shanshan Feng followed her opening 66 with a 73 to drop into a tie for 16th at 5 under. The Chinese star is coming off consecutive victories in Malaysia and Japan.

Watch Rory’s toughest interview ever shot at the Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai, where the four-time Major winner met with a young reporter on the eve of his DP World Tour Championship defence.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Mackenzie Hughes, the Canadian rookie on the PGA Tour, had thoughts of a sub-60 round on a perfect day for scoring in the RSM Classic on Thursday.

The 25-year-old from Dundas, Ont., wound up with a 61 at Sea Island for a one-shot lead after the first round.

Here are a few highlights from his round.

A great start to the week got even better when Stewart Cink opened with a career-low 62. His wife, Lisa, walked all 18 holes.

Cink stepped away from the PGA Tour in May when his wife was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer. After nine rounds of chemotherapy, she received what Cink said was a good report from doctors in Houston on Monday.

Cink says he’s made some changes in his attitude on the course to make golf only part of his life.

More highlights from round 1.

NAPLES, Fla. – Shanshan Feng was right back on top of an LPGA Tour leaderboard Thursday, shooting a 6-under 66 to take a one-shot lead over So Yeon Ryu and Charley Hull after the first round of the CME Group Tour Championship.

Coming off consecutive victories in Malaysia and Japan, Feng is one of nine players who entered the season finale with a chance to win the Race to the CME Globe season title and $1 million bonus. The Chinese star won in 2013 at Tiburon Golf Club.

“Somehow, the course is playing longer compared to three years ago,” Feng said. “I don’t know, maybe because I’m getting older I’m hitting shorter.”

Ha Na Jang, Sei Young Kim, In Gee Chun, Amy Yang, Lizette Salas, Beatriz Recari, Ryann O’Toole and Mo Martin all shot 68.

Top-ranked Lydia Ko had a 70. She needs a win this week to secure player of the year honours,

Ariya Jutanugarn and Smiths Falls, Ont., native Brooke Henderson, who like Ko are guaranteed the points crown if they prevail this week, each shot 72.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was 3 under.

Feng has finished no worse than a tie for fourth in her last seven events. She started the run with the Olympic bronze medal in Rio, tied for fourth at Evian in France, opened the Asia trip at home in China with a fourth-place tie, was second in Taiwan and tied for third in South Korea before winning in Malaysia and Japan. She took last week off, practicing only three days in Orlando.

“I think after the Asian wave, we’re just so tired. I think I needed the rest,” Feng said. “I feel actually pretty fresh coming into this week. … I’ve been playing well, so just wanted to keep up with the good playing.”

Feng birdied four of the last six holes – the par-4 13th, par-5 14th, par-3 16th and par-5 17th – in her bogey-free round. She made a 30-foot birdie putt on the par-5 first hole and also birdied the par-3 eighth.

Ryu won the last of her three LPGA Tour titles in 2014.

“What I learned through this year, having like swing change this year, sometimes I just think about swing too much,” Ryu said. “So what I learned through that is I just rather more focus to like imagination. Just keep imagine how the ball is going to fly and what shot I am going to hit instead of where is my hand going to be, my wrist.”

Hull birdied the final four holes on the front nine and also birdied the 14th. She also was off last week after being delayed getting out of Japan.

“I was only home for four days,” the 20-year-old English player said. “I didn’t touch a golf club. Hung out with my friends. I think I only touched a golf club once or twice last week.”

Carlota Ciganda had a 75. She won her first LPGA Tour title last month in South Korea and won the event in Mexico City on Sunday.

Ko and Jutanugarn are fighting for the big year-end honours.

Only a win would be enough to give Ko her second straight player-of-the-year award; any other result, and that title goes to Jutanugarn. They came in separated by $17,305 in the money standings, and Ko (69.611) enters with a minuscule edge over Chun (69.632) for the Vare Trophy presented to the player with the lowest scoring average.

The points in the CME Globe standings reset for the finale, so Jutanugarn, Ko and Henderson all truly control their destinies when it comes to the $1 million bonus that goes to the points champion.