Tommy Fleetwood may be living the dream on the DP World Tour but he still has ambitions to do much more, starting with lifting the Dallah Trophy at this week’s Hero Dubai Desert Classic.
The Englishman is chasing a third Rolex Series title as he looks to continue a remarkable run of recent success that saw him win his first PGA TOUR title – and the FedEx Cup – at last season’s TOUR Championship.
He then added a victory at the DP World India Championship and arrives at Emirates Golf Club at a career-high third in the Official World Golf Ranking.
It is all a far cry from when he became the youngest HotelPlanner Tour Rankings winner in history at the age of 20 in 2011 and since then he has claimed eight DP World Tour victories, helping him lift the Harry Vardon Trophy in 2017.
There have been many changes in both the Tour and the international golfing landscape in those intervening 15 years but Fleetwood is happy it is still a place where players can follow in his footsteps and chase their own dreams.
“I think this Tour is amazing,” he said. “I wouldn't say it's middle ground.
“I have kids that are striving to make it in the game. I dreamt all my life as a junior to make it on the DP World Tour and be a winner here. I think it's where so many of us have dreamt of playing all our lives.
“I think it gives opportunities from people all over the world to qualify for this Tour, and I also think this Tour is a big part in people chasing their dreams elsewhere as well.
“It's an amazing Tour with amazing people that play and work on the Tour. And I think it's been around for a long, long time, and amazing players and amazing tournaments, and it continues to do that.”
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Having won season-long honours on three different tours on both side of the Atlantic and been part of three winning Ryder Cup teams from four appearances, the natural talk is now of Fleetwood becoming a Major champion.
He has twice finished second in one of golf’s four biggest events but had a best finish of 16th at The Open in 2025, a rare disappointment in his stellar year.
And while Fleetwood admits he would love to add one of those titles to his collection, he believes that will come by focusing on the journey rather than the destination.
“I'm a big believer in goals and dreams,” he said. “I have my lifetime dreams in the game from when I was a kid and they are still going.
“Then goals, I just think they set up the direction in what you work to every single day. I think you should set goals high. I don't necessarily think it's that important to achieve them. I think it's more the process of setting those goals and striving for those and seeing where you get to.
“I don't live and die by whether I achieve what I want to or not. I love having those things to aim for and every now and again... moments come through the year that you can picture and that you can go for.
“I think, you know, in India, I think it was a perfect example when I got to win with (son) Frankie running on to the 18th green. That was a moment we can envision when we talk about it and it's one of those things that I happened to live and achieve it. I think things like that come up and you work towards them. There's a level of your golf game I think is very important to work towards.
“I think the best players in the world obviously play at a very consistently high level. It's not just about winning one tournament or two tournaments. They work towards making their game as good as they possibly can and see where you go from there and see what you achieve from there. I enjoy doing that. I enjoy that standard and working towards that.
“A hundred per cent, Majors are there, and everybody that plays the game would love one of them, two of them, three of them, whatever it is, you [want to] put them on your resumé, and I always look towards that.
“One of the disappointing things of 2025, as good as my year was and finishing the year at World Number Three and so much good stuff, my Major performances were not what I would want, really. I didn't feel like I contended in any and I didn't play how I wanted to in those events.
“So that's something I can look towards how maybe I can do something different preparation-wise or play better in those to see if I can get to Sundays in a Major in contention a little bit more.”
Before Major season starts, Fleetwood needs to try and tame the Majlis Course, a feat he admits he has not found easy over his career.
This is his 15th consecutive appearance at the Desert Classic and while he has missed just two cuts, he also has just two top tens.
He does not believe he is far away from contending, however, and would love to join Ernie Els, Tiger Woods, Sergo Garcia and Danny Willett as players who lifted the Dallah and a Major trophy in the same year.
“I know how to play the course,” he said. “Like I can see the shots and... you see how the winners played in the past and how they scored. It's just doing it that's the issue.
“I think there are times I've played very well around this course and I just haven't put the all-around game together. There's times where maybe I've let myself down on the greens or haven't scored as well, or times where I've not played the par fives as well. It's just putting everything together where you can contend.
“I think I've been in the last group once or twice on Sunday and fallen back. I just haven't quite put it all together around here. I love the challenge and I really do enjoy playing around here. And there's a lot of aspects about the course that suit the way I see golf.
“There's been tournaments in the past where I've missed five cuts in a row at that venue and then you have a great result. So stranger things have happened. I'm looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to getting ready for it and playing.
“I feel like it's a course that I can play well around."
