The 2023 Hero Dubai Desert Classic is heading for a Monday finish, the DP World Tour announced Friday.
The second round of the second Rolex Series event of the 2023 schedule was delayed on Friday, initially because the tour was unable to finish Thursday's first round and set out to complete that play on Friday morning. The emirates tournament was delayed by, of all things, the rare rain storm in Dubai. Significant rain, however, can have devastating impact in the arid environment.
All told, tournament officials lost eight hours of playing time, and that was enough to throw off the entire schedule.
After the second round got going on Friday, DP World Tour officials announced the event will be played to completion on Monday. The second round will be finished on Saturday. On Sunday, the third round will be played in full, and the final round will be played on Monday.
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Officials said the weather forecast is expected to improve throughout the weekend, rendering a low prospect of any further delays.
The Dubai Desert Classic is one of the biggest events on the DP World Tour schedule, and the Rolex Series event features a huge $9 million purse as well as increased Race to Dubai points that are critical in the season-long race. Keeping both of those things in mind, DP World Tour officials wanted to give the 132-player field ample opportunity to play the full event as scheduled -- with a day added to the proceedings.