DP World Tour Championship 2012: Day 4 Leaderboard Analysis, Highlights and More

The DP World Tour Championship is the premier professional golf tournament of the Middle East and an entertaining stop in the European tour. 

The tournament is in its fourth year and was established in 2009 after replacing the Volvo Masters tour that was held in Spain. The tournament is held in the metropolitan city of Dubai off the coast of the Persian Gulf. 

In 2011, the tournament was won by Alvaro Quiros of Spain, who ended the tournament 19 strokes under par. 

This year, the battle was slightly more intense, as the top two golfers on the leaderboard—Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose—both made a run at the tournament record of 23-under, set by England's Lee Westwood during the tournament's 2009 debut. 

McIlroy came out on top with an overall score of 265 and tied the tournament record by finishing 23-under. England's Rose made things interesting by shooting a 62 in the final round, but he narrowly placed behind McIlroy with a score of 267. 

McIlroy will take home the €1,041,429 first-place winnings, making it a very profitable year for Europe's rising star after finishing on top in four other events prior to Dubai. 

Read on for a glance at the final leaderboard and analysis on the tournament's completion. 

Justin Rose Finishes Strong

After Saturday's third round of the tournament, England's Justin Rose was in a seven-way tie for the seventh-place spot and desperately needed a way to separate himself from the herd. 

Not only was Rose able to do just that, but he even put himself in a position to win the tournament altogether. 

Rose stepped up by shooting for a score of 62 in the fourth round, which was the best round of the tournament among all the golfers participating in the event. 

After shooting 68, 68 and 69 in the first three rounds, Rose ended the final round by shooting under par in seven of the final nine holes. 

He fell just short of first place, but Rose will be taking home a sizable second-place prize of €694,312.

Rory McIlroy Comes Out on Top

After Justin Rose finished the final round with a remarkable score of 62, it put pressure on Rory McIlroy to finish strong. 

Even a slight hiccup would have forced McIlroy to relinquish the top spot, but he showed consistency by ending the final round with a score of 66. 

McIlroy shot a 66 in every round of the tournament except Round 2, where he finished with a 67. 

That kind of consistency makes McIlroy's performance worthy of the €1,041,429 prize. 

With multiple wins this year and a newly found place in the spotlight, the 23-year-old McIlroy has become one of the elite professional golfers in today's game. 

Leaderboard

1             MCILROY, Rory  -23          18           -6            66           67

2             ROSE, Justin       -21          18           -10          68           68

T3           SCHWARTZEL, Charl        -18          18           -4            68

T3           DONALD, Luke  -18          18           -1            65           68

5             OOSTHUIZEN, Louis        -17          18           -3            67

6             GRACE, Branden              -16          18           -4            69

T7           JAIDEE, Thongchai           -15          18           -4            68

T7           STENSON, Henrik             -15          18           -4            68

T9           GARCIA, Sergio -14          18           -8            73           64

T9           ANDERSSON HED, Fredrik            -14          18           -6 274

T9           HARRINGTON, Padraig  -14          18           -4            67

T9           FDEZ-CASTAÑO, Gonzalo             -14          18           -4 274

T9           DONALDSON, Jamie       -14          18           -3            68

T14         JAMIESON, Scott              -13          18           -6            68

T14         LAWRIE, Peter   -13          18           -4            68           72

T16         JIMÉNEZ, Miguel Angel -12          18           -7            71

T16         GALLACHER, Stephen    -12          18           -6            68

T16         JACQUELIN, Raphaël      -12          18           -3            69

T16         HANSON, Peter                -12          18           -2            69                67

T16         LUITEN, Joost    -12          18           Par         69           68

T21         ROCK, Robert    -11          18           -6            72           70

T21         SINGH, Jeev Milkha        -11          18           -4            71

T21         OLESEN, Thorbjørn          -11          18           -3            68

T21         HANSEN, Anders              -11          18           -3            69

T21         WATTEL, Romain              -11          18           Par         70

T26         KAYMER, Martin               -10          18           -3            67

T26         KJELDSEN, Søren              -10          18           -3            72

T26         WOOD, Chris      -10          18           -3            71           69

T26         POULTER, Ian     -10          18           -3            72           70

T26         RAMSAY, Richie                -10          18           -2            67                68

T26         WILLETT, Danny                -10          18           Par         71                65

T26         WARREN, Marc -10          18           +1           66           67

T26         COETZEE, George             -10          18           +1           71

T34         MOLINARI, Francesco    -9            18           -7            72

T34         COLSAERTS, Nicolas        -9            18           -3            68

T36         LARRAZÁBAL, Pablo        -8            18           -6            70

T36         CAÑIZARES, Alejandro   -8            18           -5            74

T36         DUBUISSON, Victor         -8            18           -3            71

39           NOREN, Alexander          -7            18           -5            70

T40         FRASER, Marcus               -6            18           -1            69

T40         CABRERA-BELLO, Rafa    -6            18           Par         70

T42         MANASSERO, Matteo    -5            18           -3            73

T42         SIEM, Marcel     -5            18           -2            73           65

T42         KRUGER, Jbe      -5            18           -1            72           70

T42         DYSON, Simon   -5            18           Par         69           69

T42         WIESBERGER, Bernd       -5            18           +1           72

T42         AIKEN, Thomas -5            18           +4           70           66

T48         DRYSDALE, David              -4            18           -3            71

T48         LAWRIE, Paul     -4            18           -1            71           72

T48         WESTWOOD, Lee             -4            18           Par         67

51           STERNE, Richard               -2            18           -1            74

T52         MCDOWELL, Graeme     -1            18           -3            72

T52         HOEY, Michael   -1            18           +3           70           71

T54         SLATTERY, Lee   +1           18           -4            74           72

T54         LYNN, David       +1           18           -3            73           77

56           FINCH, Richard  +7           18           -1            76           74

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