Thanks For The Memories - Bjorn Says A Heartfelt Thank You In What Looks Like Final Dubai Desert Classic

After missing the cut in the Dubai Desert Classic, Thomas Bjorn said that it looks likely to be his final appearance in the event

Thomas Bjorn
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Paul Higham
By Paul Higham
published

European golfing stalwart Thomas Bjorn looks to have played his last Dubai Desert Classic after posting a heartfelt message on social media.

The 2018 Ryder Cup captain finished at four over to miss the cut at Emirates Golf Club and with that the 52-year-old may have teed it up for the last time in the event.

Bjorn won the star-studded 2001 Dubai Desert Classic with a two-shot victory over Padraig Harrington and Tiger Woods, so has fond memories of the event.

In what could be a winding down of him playing on the DP World Tour, Bjorn posted soon after that it could be his last appearance at Dubai's oldest event.

"On what is most likely my last ever @DubaiDCGolf - the most heartfelt thank you," Bjorn wrote on X.

"Although this week wasn’t meant to be golf wise, this tournament has been unbelievably special to me and my family. The best of the best. Thank you for all the memories."

Bjorn's win in Dubai was the sixth of 15 he would go on to claim on the DP World Tour in a career that would also include an unbeaten Ryder Cup record.

After playing and winning in three Ryder Cups as a player, Bjorn was then installed as captain for a dominant European victory at Le Golf National in Paris in 2018.

Playing on the DP World Tour proper will only get harder for players as they get on in years, so Bjorn may well be counting down the days on events played alongside the young guns in Europe.

Bjorn was also having his say on the future of golf while appearing in Dubai perhaps for the final time, when he called for the future to include a "global game" once the PGA Tour and PIF finally agree a deal.

"The professional game is the shining light at the top of the pyramid," Bjorn wrote on X. "Imagine if that was a unified, global game where the best played against the best on the greatest courses in the greatest tournaments. It’s really not that difficult…"

Paul Higham
Paul Higham
Contributor

Paul Higham is a sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in covering most major sporting events for both Sky Sports and BBC Sport. He is currently freelance and covers the golf majors on the BBC Sport website.  Highlights over the years include covering that epic Monday finish in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and watching Rory McIlroy produce one of the most dominant Major wins at the 2011 US Open at Congressional. He also writes betting previews and still feels strangely proud of backing Danny Willett when he won the Masters in 2016 - Willett also praised his putting stroke during a media event before the Open at Hoylake. Favourite interviews he's conducted have been with McIlroy, Paul McGinley, Thomas Bjorn, Rickie Fowler and the enigma that is Victor Dubuisson. A big fan of watching any golf from any tour, sadly he spends more time writing about golf than playing these days with two young children, and as a big fair weather golfer claims playing in shorts is worth at least five shots. Being from Liverpool he loves the likes of Hoylake, Birkdale and the stretch of tracks along England's Golf Coast, but would say his favourite courses played are Kingsbarns and Portrush. 

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