Sheffield’s Joe Dean is set for a rollercoaster ride in Dubai this week that could end up taking him all the way to America.

For the former Morrisons delivery driver who had his first win on the DP World Tour this summer, heads into the season-ending DP World Tour Championship clutching the 10th and final ticket to the PGA Tour.

The 32-year-old sits 16th on the Race to Dubai rankings. The top 10 players not already exempt earn a year’s playing on the PGA Tour.

A good finish this week will see the British Masters champion seal a place in the US but it is going to be a nerve-jangling few days – as his fellow Yorkshireman Dan Brown will attest. Brown was seventh on the PGA Tour ranking list heading into the finale a year ago but just hours after walking off the 72nd green in Dubai he was dropped into 11th by Laurie Canter and left devastated.

Joe Dean of England plays his bunker shot on the 16th hole on day three of the Open de España (Picture: Stuart Franklin/Getty images)

placeholder image — Joe Dean of England plays his bunker shot on the 16th hole on day three of the Open de España (Picture: Stuart Franklin/Getty images)

He only got the chance to take up playing privileges in the United States when Canter rang him a week later to say he was going to LIV instead.

A year in America might not have worked out for Brown who returned to the DP World Tour in the summer with his season now over, but it is something Dean has the chance to claim over the coming four days.

Wakefield’s Dan Bradbury is also in with a shout, but a 49th-place finish in Abu Dhabi last week saw him fall to 24th in the Race to Dubai rankings, with ground to make up to pass Dean and others in his quest for America. Howley Hall’s Marcus Armitage is 30th after a solid year.

At the top of the standings, the race to finish No 1 is set to go to the wire.

Dan Bradbury in Abu Dhabi last week (Picture: Warren Little/Getty Images)

Unheralded Spaniard Eugenio Chacarra currently sits in top spot after three wins in 2026 but there are some huge names in hot pursuit, not least Rory McIlroy who is chasing an eighth overall, which would tie the record held by Colin Montgomerie.

Spaniard Chacarra holds a 533.93 lead over Masters champion McIlroy heading into the finale at Jumeirah Golf Estates, where 2,000 points are available to the winner.

After a third-place finish at last week’s Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship, McIlroy has his eyes on a fifth successive Race to Dubai crown.

The likes of Patrick Reed, USPGA champion Aaron Rai, Jon Rahm and Open winner Ryan Fox are also all still within a mathematical chance of making a late surge for the top of the standings should the leaders fall back.

Chacarra knows there will be little margin for error when he heads out on Thursday in marquee final pairing alongside McIlroy.

“Obviously we know how good Rory McIlroy is and he is one of my idols. It is going to be a tough test and that is what I dreamed of since I was little,” said Chacarra.

“But I already beat him in India (at the DP World India Championship in October), so I need to remind myself that I can compete with him and I can beat him like I did already a couple weeks ago. This is a course that he has had a lot of success (on) and I only played once and didn’t do very well, but they are just numbers.

“This is golf and crazy things happen.

“If I bring my A-game, I can compete with him on Sunday.”