Matthew Fitzpatrick is thrilled to be back in Dubai on the eve of his DP World Tour Championship title defence, which begins at Jumeirah Golf Estates on Thursday as the Race to Dubai reaches its conclusion at the European Tour’s season-ending grand finale.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” said the Englishman. “It’s nice to be back and it’s going to be the first time trying to defend a title on the same golf course so I’m really looking forward to the week. This is a place I’ve done well even before my win here last year – I finished fourth in 2015 – so I love the course and all being well I’ll have a similar sort of result and end the year on a high.”

The 23-year-old endured a rocky summer but is heading into this week’s season-ending event in fine form having picked up his fourth European Tour title at the Omega European Masters in September before going on a consistent run that has seen him finish in the top 15 in each of his six events since the victory in Switzerland.