Former LIV Golf recruit sends Ryder Cup message with victory in India
Eugenio Chacarra claimed his third DP Word Tour win of the season at New Delhi Golf Club.
Former LIV Golf recruit Eugenio Chacarra was overcome with emotion after claiming his third victory of the season at the weather-disrupted DP World India Championship.
Torrential rain and lightning on the opening day of the $5m event at Delhi Golf Club left tournament officials scrambling to make up for lost time.
Chacarra was consequently forced to play 25 holes on Sunday, first putting the finishing touches to a superb bogey-free nine-under-par 63 in his third round before completing the job in the afternoon with a 2-under-par 70 to win by two shots from New Zealand's Daniel Hillier.
The victory, which follows his triumphs at the KLM Open and Italian Open, marks a third title of the season for the Spaniard and sends him above Patrick Reed at the top of the Race to Dubai standings with the two season-ending DP World Tour play-offs in the Middle East looming.
Position | Player | Score |
1 | Eugenio Chacarra | -21 |
2 | Daniel Hillier | -19 |
3 | Angel Hidalgo | -15 |
3 | Adrian Meronk | -15 |
5 | J. C. Ritchie | -13 |
5 | Joost Luiten | -13 |
5 | Tommy Fleetwood | -13 |
5 | Gregorio De Leo | -13 |
9 | Thomas Detry | -12 |
9 | Tom McKibbin | -12 |
9 | Robert MacIntyre | -12 |
9 | Adrian Otaegui | -12 |
13 | Joel Girrbach | -11 |
13 | Laurie Canter | -11 |
15 | Sean Crocker | -10 |
15 | Ignacio Elvira | -10 |
15 | Shane Lowry | -10 |
15 | Scott Jamieson | -10 |
15 | Jayden Schaper | -10 |
20 | Jacob Skov Olesen | -9 |
20 | Niklas Noergaard | -9 |
20 | Aaron Rai | -9 |
23 | Tom Vaillant | -8 |
23 | Francesco Laporta | -8 |
23 | Anirban Lahiri | -8 |
23 | Frederic Lacroix | -8 |
23 | Jordan Gumberg | -8 |
23 | Nathan Kimsey | -8 |
23 | Patrick Reed | -8 |
30 | Marcus Armitage | -7 |
30 | Kota Kaneko | -7 |
32 | Todd Clements | -6 |
32 | Casey Jarvis | -6 |
34 | Yuvraj Sandhu | -5 |
34 | Matteo Manassero | -5 |
34 | Guido Migliozzi | -5 |
34 | Ewen Ferguson | -5 |
34 | Daniel Bradbury | -5 |
34 | Nicolai von Dellingshausen | -5 |
34 | Freddy Schott | -5 |
34 | Bernd Wiesberger | -5 |
42 | James Morrison | -4 |
42 | Justin Rose | -4 |
42 | Om Prakash Chouhan | -4 |
42 | Byeong-Hun An | -4 |
42 | Johannes Veerman | -4 |
42 | Martin Couvra | -4 |
42 | Rory McIlroy | -4 |
49 | David Law | -3 |
49 | Karandeep Kochhar | -3 |
49 | Marcel Siem | -3 |
49 | Eddie Pepperell | -3 |
49 | Davis Bryant | -3 |
54 | Thriston Lawrence | -2 |
55 | Sebastian Soederberg | -1 |
55 | Jack Senior | -1 |
55 | Ben Schmidt | -1 |
55 | Saptak Talwar | -1 |
55 | Stefano Mazzoli | -1 |
60 | Euan Walker | E |
60 | Yuto Katsuragawa | E |
60 | Oihan Guillamoundeguy | E |
63 | Ryan Peake | +1 |
63 | Romain Langasque | +1 |
63 | Brandon Robinson-Thompson | +1 |
66 | Matthew Baldwin | +2 |
67 | Albin Bergstroem | +3 |
67 | Daniel Young | +3 |
69 | Cameron Adam | +4 |
69 | Jens Dantorp | +4 |
69 | Manuel Elvira | +4 |
69 | Luke Donald | +4 |
69 | Shiv Kapur | +4 |
74 | Hugo Townsend | +5 |
74 | Darius van Driel | +5 |
76 | Ivan Cantero | +6 |
76 | Maximilian Steinlechner | +6 |
"Last round was tough, really tiring, waking up three days in a row at 4am," Chacarra told Sky Sports in the immediate aftermath of victory.
"My body wasn't there, I didn't feel good."
He added: "I know what I'm capable of. I was one of the best amateurs in the world, and I wanted to be one of the best professional players in the world. I worked really hard. I got a great team surrounding me.
"They pushed me, my family, everyone back home. They're always trying to make me better. I think we've been doing a great job, great hard work."
The victory will also send a clear message to European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald.
Donald invited Chacarra and his compatriot, Angel Ayora, to a scouting mission to the 2027 venue in County Limerick, Ireland, two months ago.
Chacarra beat several Ryder Cup stars this week from the European contingent, including Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry and Robert MacIntyre.
"I told Luke back in the day I want to be on that team by not just a pick," he said.
"I want to be one of the six spots. That's one of the goals we have on the team. I'm working really hard for it.
"There's still a year away, but I know what I'm capable of. I know I'm a good player.
"I've got a lot of charisma. I just want to keep getting better and keep winning."
Chacarra also confirmed he will play in Korea next week in a bid to strengthen his lead over the aforementioned Reed in the season-long points race.
McIlroy, who finished in a share of 42nd in India, now trails Chacarra by a wide margin.
"Those two guys are heroes for me," Chacarra said.
"As a Spanish golfer, Seve did everything for European and Spanish golf. And then Jon. It's a guy I've been looking up to since he went to college. It's a professional goal.
"What he has accomplished is amazing. Hopefully, I can put my name on that trophy, too. That's one of the goals.
"I know it's not going to be easy. Rory in Dubai always plays good. I know it's going to be a big battle.
"Patrick, too. Two of the best players in the world coming for me now. I know they're not going to make it easy."
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