Tyrrell Hatton admits golf rule confusion after dramatic Dubai Desert Classic win

Selected others: P. Reed -9, R. MacIntyre -7, T. Fleetwood -5

Final leaderboard

Tyrrell Hatton admitted he thought the leaderboard was incorrect during the final round of the Hero Dubai Desert Classic. 

The Englishman produced a clutch finish on the 72nd hole at Emirates Golf Club, draining a testy par putt from nine feet to win by one stroke and avoid a playoff with New Zealand's Daniel Hillier. 

A shaking Hatton, 33, told Sky Sports' Tim Barter that he thought he led by two strokes when he was standing on the 12th tee, only to be told by his caddie Hugo Dobson that it was incorrect.

Hillier double hit a chip shot on the hole prior but the golf rules were changed in 2019. 

"I thought it was [a] two [stroke penalty], but it was one," Hatton said in the immediate aftermath of firing a final round of 3-under 69 to reach 15-under. 

Hatton made a sloppy bogey on the par-4 12th but settled his nerves with a birdie at the 16th after stuffing his approach by two feet.

He had a two-shot lead on the final hole and was forced to two-putt from 47 feet after Hillier got up-and-down for birdie to reach 14-under. 

Hatton finished three clear of Rory McIlroy, who carded a final round of 66 and four clear of potential LIV rectruit Tom McKibbin. 

Laurie Canter finished solo third on 13-under. 

"I'm not going to lie, I was pretty nervous on the back nine to be honest," Hatton said.  

"I guess I just maybe wanted it a bit too much."

This represents Hatton's eighth DP World Tour title and his fifth Rolex Series victory. 

"It feels amazing," he said.  

"I said earlier in the week, this is one of the events that you would like to have on your C.V. 

"It's such an iconic event for the DP World Tour.

"To add my name to the list of the amazing champions that have been before me, and yeah, to have my name on that trophy now, yeah, it's a dream come true."

Hatton now leads the Race to Dubai and tops the European Ryder Cup rankings. 

Although he doesn't need to rely on automatic qualification, he clearly wants to prove to skipper Luke Donald that he can perform in non-LIV events. 

Hatton joined the breakaway tour in 2023 for a reported $50m and has been fined heavily by the DP World Tour. 

The golfer and Jon Rahm - who missed the cut this week - have appealed their fines and it is understood their case won't be heard until after the 2025 matches at Bethpage Black. 

"Like I said earlier in the week, this event and the four majors this year are massive for me to try and earn as many points as I can to try and be an automatic qualifier," Hatton said. 

"This is a big step in the right direction."

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