Race to Dubai 2015 Standings: Updated Rankings After BMW Masters 2015

Danny Willett narrowly missed taking the lead from Rory McIlroy in the Race to Dubai, as his tied-28th place finish at the 2015 BMW Masters left him 1,613 points short of the Northern Ireland superstar.

McIlroy missed the event in Shanghai on Sunday, leaving Willett needing to finish in sole 28th or above to grab the lead in the race. 

The European Tour shared the latest standings after the conclusion of the BMW Masters, which Sweden's Kristoffer Broberg won:

McIlroy can win the race for the third time at the DP World Tour Championship climax at the Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai, which begins on Thursday, Nov. 19. 

Willett's final round of 70 at Lake Malaran prevented the Englishman usurping McIlroy for the overall lead in the Final Series countdown, leaving the player to rue a difficult last effort in China.

A bogey on the 17th stunned Willett on the final day, and it cost him precious points as he carded seven under, according to the European Tour.

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Willett described his efforts as "stale," as he limped over the line at the BMW Masters, and criticised his own putting, but he was positive about his chances in Dubai—as quoted by the Independent's Phil Casey:

"

Last week was pretty stale [at the WGC-HSBC Champions] and this week’s just been stale again. I putted pretty poorly for four days. I never really got anything going.

It’s close, though, and I guess you can look at it as if I go there next week and I win, I win. It’s one of those good situations to be in. I’ve got a day and a half off to regroup and chill out and I know I’m going to have a chance next week.

"

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Seven players are still in with a shout of winning the race, but Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, Louis Oosthuizen and Branden Grace need to finish second or better in Dubai, while An Byeong-hun has to be victorious, according to Casey.

Rose finished seventh in Shanghai, adding to his win at the Hong Kong Open, and fancies his chances of an epic final tournament at the Jumeirah, per Casey: "I always knew I was going to have to win one of these two weeks, so hopefully I’m deferring and can finish it off on the grand stage in Dubai."

McIlroy's superior record in Dubai will see him as most peoples' favourite going into the final tournament. The mercurial sportsman has finished in the top five in his six appearances, winning in 2012, per Casey. 

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However, McIlroy's form has been sketchy in recent weeks, and his putting has left much to be debated as he struggles to finish on the green.

His saving grace is he is a regular at the Jumeirah and knows his way around the course, and the added pressure could be an element he deals with better than his opponents for the overall title. 

Willett has been consistent in his leaderboard positioning in recent months, but it might be Rose who offers the biggest threat to McIlroy—a major winner who knows how to get the job done. 

Rose is in fine fettle as the DP World Tour Championship approaches, and he has the proven mental toughness to beat McIlroy in the final installment of the Race to Dubai.