DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Englishman Tyrrell Hatton held off Daniel Hillier of New Zealand to win the Dubai Desert Classic by a stroke on Sunday, equaling Jon Rahm's record of five Rolex Series victories.
Overnight leader Hillier birdied the last to put pressure on his playing partner but Hatton held his nerve to hole his par putt from seven feet and secure the win.
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Tyrell Hatton of England plays his second shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England poses with the trophy after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England walks after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England prepares to plays his second shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England and his caddie celebrate after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England, left, is congratulated by Daniel Hillier of New Zealand after Hatton won the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Daniel Hillier of New Zealand plays his second shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England plays his second shot on the 16th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England poses with the trophy after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
“It feels amazing,” Hatton said. “I said earlier in the week, this is one of the events that you would like to have on your CV. It’s such an iconic event for the DP World Tour. To add my name to the list of the amazing champions that have been before me, and to have my name on that trophy now, it’s a dream come true."
The Rolex Series includes a few events with elevated purses every season. Hatton hadn't won one of these tournaments since Abu Dhabi in 2021.
Hatton shot a 3-under 69 in the final round Sunday to finish 15 under overall to edge Hillier (71) and fellow Englishman Laurie Canter (68) in third, another shot back.
“I’m not going to lie, I was pretty nervous on the back nine to be honest," Hatton said. "I guess I just maybe wanted it a bit too much. I knew the position I was in, and a little bit scruffy down the last. But yeah, to see that putt go in felt amazing. Just so happy to win.”
The 26-year-old Hillier, ranked 223rd in the world, was seeking his first win on the European tour since his maiden victory on the tour at the British Masters in July 2023. He hadn’t had a top-10 finish since the Open de España in October 2023.
“It’s bittersweet, that’s for sure," he said. "Yeah, I didn’t have my best today, obviously, but I fought hard all day, just barely gave myself a chance down the stretch. Hats off to Tyrrell. He was pretty solid down the stretch there. He’s class. Well done to him.”
Rory McIlroy (66), who was seeking a third straight title at the tournament, finished joint fourth on 12 under with Niklas Norgaard (66) of Denmark.
Japan’s Keita Nakajima, who tied for 21st, finished with an albatross at the par-five 18th.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Tyrell Hatton of England plays his second shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England poses with the trophy after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England walks after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England prepares to plays his second shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England and his caddie celebrate after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England, left, is congratulated by Daniel Hillier of New Zealand after Hatton won the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Daniel Hillier of New Zealand plays his second shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England plays his second shot on the 16th hole during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tyrell Hatton of England poses with the trophy after winning the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump hosted Jordan’s King Abdullah II at the White House on Tuesday and renewed his insistence that Gaza could somehow be emptied of all residents, controlled by the U.S. and redeveloped as a tourist area.
It's an audacious, but highly unlikely, scheme to dramatically remake the Middle East and would require Jordan and other Arab nations to accept more Gazans — something Abdullah reiterated after their meeting that he opposes.
The pair met in the Oval Office with Secretary of State Marco Rubio also on hand. The president suggested he wouldn't withhold U.S. aid to Jordan or Egypt if they don't agree to dramatically increase the number of people from Gaza they take in.
“I don’t have to threaten that. I do believe we’re above that," Trump said. That contradicted the Republican president's previous suggestion that holding back aid from Washington was a possibility.
Abdullah was asked repeatedly about Trump's plan to clear out Gaza and overhaul it as a resort on the Mediterranean Sea. He didn't make substantive comments on it and didn't commit to the idea that his country could accept large numbers of Gazans.
He did say, however, that Jordan would be willing “right away” to take as many as 2,000 children in Gaza who are suffering from cancer or otherwise ill.
“I finally see somebody that can take us across the finish line to bring stability, peace and prosperity to all of us in the region,” the king said of Trump in his statement at the top of the meeting.
Abdullah left the White House after about two hours and headed to Capitol Hill to meet with a bipartisan group of lawmakers. He posted on X that during his meeting with Trump, “I reiterated Jordan’s steadfast position against the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.”
“This is the unified Arab position. Rebuilding Gaza without displacing the Palestinians and addressing the dire humanitarian situation should be the priority for all,” Abdullah wrote.
That was despite Trump using his appearance with Abdullah to repeat suggestions that the U.S. could come to control Gaza. Trump also said Tuesday that it wouldn't require committing American funds but that the U.S. overseeing the war-torn region would be possible, “Under the U.S. authority,” without elaborating what that actually was.
“We’re not going to buy anything. We’re going to have it," Trump said of U.S. control in Gaza. He suggested that the redeveloped area could have new hotels, office buildings and houses, "and we’ll make it exciting.”
“I can tell you about real estate. They’re going to be in love with it,” Trump, who built a New York real estate empire that catapulted him to fame, said of Gaza's residents, while also insisting that he personally would not be involved in development.
Trump has previously suggested that Gaza’s residents could be displaced temporarily or permanently, an idea that leaders around the Arab world have sharply rebuked.
Additionally, Trump renewed his suggestions that a tenuous ceasefire between Hamas and Israel could be canceled if Hamas doesn't release all of the remaining hostages it is holding by midday on Saturday. Trump first made that suggestion on Monday, though he insisted then that the ultimate decision lies with Israel.
“I don’t think they’re going to make the deadline, personally," Trump said Tuesday of Hamas. "They want to play tough guy. We’ll see how tough they are.”
The king's visit came at a perilous moment for the ongoing ceasefire in Gaza. Hamas is accusing Israel of violating the truce and says it will delay future releases of hostages captured in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack.
In a statement, Hamas called Trump's Tuesday comments “racist” and “a call for ethnic cleansing.” It also accused the president of seeking to “liquidate the Palestinian cause and deny the national rights of the Palestinian people.”
Trump has repeatedly proposed the U.S. take control of Gaza and turn it into “the Riviera of the Middle East,” with Palestinians in the war-torn territory pushed into neighboring nations with no right of return.
Trump's Tuesday comments contradicted his Monday suggestions that, if necessary, he would withhold U.S. funding from Jordan and Egypt — longtime U.S. allies and among the top recipients of its foreign aid — as a means of persuading them to accept additional Palestinians from Gaza.
Jordan is home to more than 2 million Palestinians. Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, said last week that his country’s opposition to Trump’s idea about displacing Gaza's residents was “firm and unwavering.”
Besides concerns about jeopardizing the long-held goals of a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, Egypt and Jordan have privately raised security concerns about welcoming large numbers of additional refugees into their countries even temporarily.
Trump announced his ideas for resettling Palestinians from Gaza and taking ownership of the territory for the U.S. during a press conference last week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The president initially didn’t rule out deploying U.S. troops to help secure Gaza but at the same time insisted no U.S. funds would go to pay for the reconstruction of the territory, raising fundamental questions about the nature of his plan.
After Trump’s initial comments, Rubio and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt insisted that Trump only wanted Palestinians relocated from Gaza “temporarily” and sought an “interim” period to allow for debris removal, the disposal of unexploded ordnance and reconstruction.
But asked in an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier that aired Monday if Palestinians in Gaza would have a right to return to the territory under his plan, he replied, “No, they wouldn’t.”
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump speaks with Jordan's King Abdullah II in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
Jordan's King Abdullah II listens during a meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump speaks with Jordan's King Abdullah II in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
Jordan's King Abdullah II arrives at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II, right, and Crown Prince Hussein at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II, right, and Crown Prince Hussein at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II, right, and Crown Prince Hussein at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II, right, and Crown Prince Hussein at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump greets Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
FILE - President Donald Trump stands with Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House, June 25, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)