Rory birdie blitz seals record €5.5m season

Rory McIlroy’s long-time coach, Michael Bannon was virtually speechless after the Holywood native stunned his rival shooting birdies in his closing five holes to wrap-up the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.

McIlroy recorded a final round six-under 66 to brush England’s Justin Rose and Luke Donald aside and capture his last event of the year by two strokes with a 23-under par tally on the Earth Course.

Rose had set a new course record of a 10-under par 62 to finish on 21-under par and headed straight for the practice ground, expecting to be in a play-off.