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Victor Perez won the dramatic final at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, claiming the biggest victory of his career so far. He shot a final round of 66 for a dramatic finish, improving his Ryder Cup qualification chances.
Perez was born in Séméac, France, on September 1, 1992. He started playing golf at a very young age. He quickly showed promise as a golfer and attended the University of New Mexico as a college golfer. As an amateur, Perez represented France at the Eisenhower Trophy in 2014. After college, Perez turned professional in 2015 and began competing on the European Challenge Tour.
Since earning his card for the 2016 season, Perez has been a regular competitor on the European Tour and has had several strong finishes. In 2017, he finished 5th on the Order of Merit, gaining status on the Challenge Tour.
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Victor got his first win at the 2017 Challenge de Espana and finished 18th on the Order of Merit. He shifted his focus back to the Challenge Tour in 2018. He triumphed in the second-last event of the season, the Foshan Open, and came 3rd on the Order of Merit, which gained him a full European Tour card the following season.
In 2019, Perez had his breakout year, winning his first European Tour event at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in South Africa. He also had several other top-10 finishes throughout the year. He also finished 13th in the Race to Dubai Rankings.
In May 2022, Perez clinched his second title at the Dutch Open in a playoff over Ryan Fox.
He began 2023 with the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, his third win on the DP World Tour. Before the tournament, he was in 160th place in the Race to Dubai. After winning the title in Abu Dhabi, he jumped to the top. He also jumped to 63rd in OWGR after his triumph in Abu Dhabi.
Victor Perez wins the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship
Perez claimed his third victory on the DP World Tour by winning the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. He became the first Frenchman to win a Rolex Series event.
Before the final round, Perez was behind Shane Lowry, Francesco Molinari, and Min Woo Lee, who were tied for first place. He produced an exceptional bunker hole at the 17th to take a two-shot lead into the final hole. A bogey at the 18th was enough for Perez to claim a one-stroke victory over Lee and Sebastian Sodberg.
“That bunker shot was probably the greatest shot I've ever hit," Perez said after the final.
Lee missed an eagle on the final hole that could have secured a playoff against Perez. Padraig Harrington was looking to become the oldest winner in DP World Tour history but had to settle for a fourth-place finish. Molinari slipped to fifth position due to his final round of 71. Lowry had an even worse with a disappointing 76 on Sunday.
"I got off to a good start, and I was just focusing on me and trying to do the best I can because I knew you can't control what everybody else is doing, and I was just trying to plod along." said Perez, analyzing his win.
Perez said the 17th hole wasn't as tricky as the bunker shot because it was downhill to the hole.
"So I was basically trying to fly it all the way to the hole, and if I hit it a little bit heavy it was maybe going to release."
