ABU DHABI HSBC GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

November 5, 2025

Tommy Fleetwood

Yas Links

Press Conference

CLARE BODEL: Tommy, welcome back to the Media Centre here in Abu Dhabi. It's been quite an incredible two months of the season for you, success in America, with the Ryder Cup, and winning in India. How much would it mean to come here to a part of the world that you have played billion and round off the season with a bit more success?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Absolutely. It's been a great few months. Really nice to, I guess being rewarded for all the hard work in terms of getting some wins on the board. I feel like I've built a lot of momentum. So that's been great. I feel like I've played great. I think this is a great opportunity for me again. It's going to be my last two events of 2025, and would I love to finish strong.

I think I know the courses well, and I've played these events a lot. I think I've played since I got my card. I think I've played every Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. I think I made it to the DP World Tour finals in 2013, and I played it ever since. Played these events a lot. Looking forward to it. It would be great to finish strong, it really would.

CLARE BODEL: This is a tournament you've won, and it's the 20th anniversary. Be special to win another one?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: This event, I feel like, yes, they changed courses a few years ago but I look back to 2017 and where my game was halfway through 2016, there's definitely an epic personal story there where I felt like I had to find my way back. I was in a very dark place game-wise in 2016 and could have gone either way.

When I won this event, which was the first of the year in 2017, I always see it as a big milestone in my career. I felt like I got my game back to where it was and it was a massive step for me. I won it again the year after.

But yeah, I always look at this event as a real big moment in my career.

Q. Much has been said and written about how you coped with your win after on winning on the PGA TOUR. There must have been times -- (inaudible.)

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: I think the point was, and the whole time, I didn't have any feelings different than anybody else would have. Is there were times when I was devastated. Felt like I let myself down. You know, like don't get me wrong, I would have every single feeling that every other person would have during those moments.

But my point was that -- and I do believe whatever happens, there's no point in letting it have a negative impact on what happens next and that was the important thing for me.

And any time -- you look at Travelers, I think the Travelers and St. Jude were the two main ones at the time, and whenever it came to speaking, like the first thing I tried to do, I was very aware that it's easy to talk and it's easy to mope and it's easy to be negative; and it's easy to let so many good things be missed by focusing on what went wrong. And any time I spoke, I made sure that I wanted to say the right things, both -- I mean, a lot of it when I was doing interviews, a lot of it was for myself in a way. I know when I speak, I have to look at the positives and I know that that's how I'm going to succeed when I get that chance again.

Yeah, I really believe in having the best attitude possible and letting everything -- whatever happens have like a positive outcome on what happens next. And that's just how I tried to go about it.

Yeah, I think it's cool that people appreciate that attitude and they liked it. Yeah, the best thing about it was at least I, like, proved that it will happen. If you keep doing -- if you keep believing and if you keep saying the right things, you keep believing the right things and putting the work in, it will happen eventually. It's not just saying it for the sake of it.

Q. Did you have any personal messages?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Again, I always say, I'm so lucky with the support that I have both from friends, family, competitors, and you know, the fans that watch all the time.

So yeah, it was a great story. It was a great moment for me personally and a great moment for the people I work with. It felt like so many people were really willing me on at the time, and both like personal messages and messages on social media or whatever it may be. They really meant a lot. It was great.

Q. Like winning in 2017, do you see THE TOUR Championship as another step towards a level, like top five in the world?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: I hope so. Waiting a long time to get that first win on the PGA TOUR, I got asked about it constantly, but I've always seen it as -- I just want to win once -- eight times on the DP World Tour. You look at majors, which are the ultimate. Again, I'm not going to be picky, I'd love to win one but I'd also like to win more.

The journey, aspiring to achieve everything you dreamed of, that's something that's always ongoing, and yeah, hopefully that win in America could be a catalyst for a lot more. I think I learned through all those experiences when I didn't get it done, and including the experience when I did get it done, I think I've continued to learn so much. Hopefully I keep working and playing well and putting myself in those positions.

Q. Are you staying at home this week, or are you camping in Abu Dhabi?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: I'm staying home. I'm not going to stay here tonight. Going to do some practise and it's an early start tomorrow. But for the rest of the week, I'll just drive in and out. It's not too bad. It's fine. Going to try to get back and see Frankie -- and see him after that on Friday.

All the travelling that I do throughout the year and in America, I feel like there's a big chunk here where I get it back.

Q. We're seeing a lot of juniors at the Academy and Jumeirah Golf Estates. There are rumours that you're expanding. Give us an update.

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Yeah, the challenge has been going great, continues to grow all the time. I think the community that we continue to build there, the community at Southport that we have, and the last piece that we try and bring to the game and to life are having a really positive impact, and I love seeing it grow all the time.

Hopefully this is another version we're going to open. Having one in Abu Dhabi is going to strengthen our relationship with Dubai Golf, and just being a part of the ecosystem of the golf that's in the UAE is very important to me, very meaningful. And I think the fact that we are growing more and more shows that we're doing a lot of the stuff and that people are enjoying it.

That's the main thing for me. If we can make a difference, if we can get more people into the game and we can help people chase whatever their dreams are, that's what means the most. Having the opportunity to open again is massive for us.

Q. We also talked about a change of venue for all your time here, but tell us more about the Academy here.

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Yeah, I'm trying to spread -- I do feel UAE has always been a big, like, second home for a lot of us. You know, playing on the DP World Tour, I've always played so many events here. Me and my family have chose this place to live, and I think, yeah, it's just kind of -- I do think that the Academy, the Tommy Fleetwood Academy, the more it grows and the more opportunities we get to do that; it's like we do so much good, I think, so far, and I just want to have the chance to bring that to more people.

I think this is another version of that, very, very close proximity, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. So we have that chance to build that relationship and that bond with more people. I go back to that ecosystem. Anything that I learn out here on tour or in life, I feel like I want to pass that down and help somebody. Might be one person, but the Academy has been huge so far, and I feel very lucky with the coaches, in Southport, Dubai, here, are amazing. The UAE has been so good to you us from a professional level, me from a personal level, to be able to give back and build here is big for us.

Q. Before this tournament and India, it was not known you would be coming to this tournament, but by being a Ryder Cup Team member --

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: I think the only uncertainty -- no, there was no uncertainty. The Tour have been great with us, and I think the exemption was there.

But obviously there's always a personal pride level in trying to make sure that you qualify yourself, and I actually love that I've made it to these events and that I can it can have an impact on The Race to Dubai and try to move up there and see where we can finish at the end of the year.

Like I said, I've played this event, Dubai Desert Classic, both of them, every single year that I've been on the DP World Tour and I'll do that as long as I possibly can. They have been great events and mean a lot to me, and next week, as well. As long as I can qualify or be eligible, I want to make sure that I play again.

Q. Congratulations on a brilliant season so far. Curious about your approach to this week here, a couple weeks ago, and because you've won the Abu Dhabi Championship before at a different course and different time of year, do you approach this week as a tournament you've won before and want to win again, or a brand new tournament because of the change?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Yeah, it's definitely different. You take both from it, right? I think the trophy was on the first tee today and it's nice having won -- I've won a bit but not a lot.

It's always nice when I see a trophy that's actually got my name on it. You take the positives from that and you look at your positive experiences of playing in the region and playing in this tournament and doing well. I think even would look back at year, I wasn't that far away.

But this course is a different challenge to me. Back at Abu Dhabi National, I feel very, very comfortable. I see a lot of great shots around there, and this course has proven tricky for me. I had a great first round last year.

But yeah, this course seems to demand, it just has a different look to it on the eye, the way certain holes sit for me. I've just never quite mastered this course yet. So it's more difficult in that sense. But I love the challenge. I love getting ready. I love preparing for the tournament. I actually love this time of year playing golf.

I feel like if you can get to this part of the year and feel fresh and feel motivated, it's a real positive, which I do. So I'm looking forward to playing. We'll see, yeah. I take the positives from what I've done in the past, even if it's a different venue.

Q. There is a large number of the Ryder Cup European Team Members at this tournament and next week, and of course you want to play tournaments to win, but do you see in the eyes of the media, having the team's commitment with the DP World Tour and European goals?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Sorry, ask that again.

Q. Your presence in the tournament from the European Ryder Cup Team Members, should we be seeing your presence in this tournament and next week a demonstration of your commitment to the Tour, of European golf?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Yeah, I think that's a really nice way of looking at it. All of us -- where the world of golf takes us at the moment and how the schedule sort of sits and pans out, I think it is what it is. It takes us where we are, and I think we all enjoy the schedules that we have and where we get to play.

But I think as a team, we take enormous pride in our tour and representing this tour, and playing and representing the players when we get the chance to in the Ryder Cup.

Being here I think means a lot to us. These are two huge events. And yeah, the guys that are here I'm sure are all very proud to be here and proud representatives of the Tour. Yeah, to get a chance to play in the final two events is great.

Q. After the win on the PGA, after the eight on the DP World Tour, and the Ryder Cup wins, what next to do on your professional list?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: This week and next week. I definitely want to finish 2025 as strong as possible. I think, you know, on the whole, there's definitely some goals left in 2025. Certain ones that I can't reach now and certain ones that I still can.

Looking towards 2026, I still feel like I have a lot to give and a lot of improvements that I can make. So I think there's more potential in me. Whether that's the case or not, we don't know. We'll see where my career takes me and where my golf takes me.

But yeah, I think it's a really nice feeling and really exciting to know that at some point over the next few weeks, I can sit down, reflect, look at what motivates me, inspires me and what I want to feel like at this time near and what I would like to achieve from a great position for so much good this year.

But yeah, there's lots more that I want to achieve, and I look forward to sitting down when all is said and done this year and looking forward to that. For now, I'd love to finish this season as strong as possible. It's going to mean a lot to me, and I'd love to play as well as possible.