DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Rory McIlroy emerged from a wild afternoon at the DP World Tour Championship with three birdies over his last five holes Saturday for a 4-under 68, giving him a share of the lead with Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen of Denmark as he closes in on a fourth straight Race to Dubai title.
The final hour at the Jumeirah Golf Estates featured an eight-way tie for the lead at one point. Nicolai Hojgaard started the third round with the lead and his twin brother became one of the leaders by the afternoon.
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Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland reacts after a birdie on the 1st hole during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tommy Fleetwood of England hits from the rough outside the 1st fairway during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tommy Fleetwood of England lines up a putt on the 1st green during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Spectators watch as Justin Rose of England plays his second shot on the 1st hole during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland reacts after a birdie on the 1st hole during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
When the third round ended, McIlroy and Neergaard-Peterson (68) were at 13-under 203, one shot clear of Tyrrell Hatton and five other players.
Hatton is the only player with a mathematical chance of catching McIlroy in the Race to Dubai, though it would require a collapse by the Masters champion on the Earth course where McIlroy is defending champion and has three titles.
“It would be an amazing way to end the season,” McIlroy said, who is coming off a tie for third in Abu Dhabi last week to strengthen his position at the top. “I played well when I needed to last week, especially at the weekend. I put myself in position to try to get another win here. So yeah, really pleased.”
Marco Penge of England, who is No. 2 in the Race to Dubai, opened with a 74 and has been largely out of the picture since then. He shot 68 on Saturday but remains nine behind. Hatton becomes the next challenger, and his 67 left him in the chasing pack.
Hatton would have to win and have McIlroy finish outside the top eight, though with so many players bunched at the top, it's not unreasonable for that to happen.
“Today's round has given me a chance,” Hatton said.
Plenty is at stake for Neergaard-Petersen, too. He kept a clean card after a bogey at the start for a 68, giving him a spot in the final group of the season finale and his first time playing with McIlroy. A strong finish could be enough for the Dane to earn one of the leading 10 spots for tour players to earn a PGA Tour card for 2026.
“I've had a big goal this year to see if I could win out here, and obviously if I were to do it tomorrow and get it over the line , that would be incredible,” he said.
The group one shot behind includes Rasmus Hojgaard (65), Matt Fitzpatrick (66), Tommy Fleetwood (68), Laurie Canter (68) and Angel Ayora of Spain, who bogeyed the last for a 67.
Nicolai Hojgaard slipped to a 73 but still was only two shots behind along with Justin Rose (70) and Ludvig Aberg (67).
It sets up for a wide-open finish to the European Tour season, with McIlroy going for a seventh title as Europe's No. 1, one short of the record held by Colin Montgomerie. It already has been a banner year for McIlroy, who completed the career Grand Slam at Augusta National, won The Players Championship and Pebble Beach, won the Irish Open and led Europe to victory in the Ryder Cup.
“I certainly could have coasted into these couple of weeks and enjoyed myself,” McIlroy said. “But the Race to Dubai is important to me, and it’s important to me to try to get a little bit closer to Monty. As I said, I’ve put myself in a great position to go and do that tomorrow.”
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland reacts after a birdie on the 1st hole during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tommy Fleetwood of England hits from the rough outside the 1st fairway during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Tommy Fleetwood of England lines up a putt on the 1st green during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Spectators watch as Justin Rose of England plays his second shot on the 1st hole during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland reacts after a birdie on the 1st hole during the third round of World Tour Golf Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Lionel Messi 's legacy was long secured when he came to Inter Miami and joined Major League Soccer. He'd won a World Cup, won dozens of trophies, was generally considered the greatest player in the sport's history.
He didn't need an MLS Cup.
But he wanted one — and got it.
Messi and Inter Miami have completed their ascent, beating the Vancouver Whitecaps 3-1 on Saturday in the MLS Cup final for the franchise's first championship. It came 2 1/2 years after the legend arrived in South Florida, a move that stunned plenty of onlookers at the time.
“They said soccer would never make it in America,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said during the trophy ceremony. “Inter Miami fans, has soccer made it?”
It has in South Florida, thanks to Messi. He set up the title-clinching goal with a 72nd-minute assist to Rodrigo De Paul, a play where Messi stole the ball and threaded a pass through a tiny gap in a wall of Vancouver defenders. De Paul got it in stride, pushed it into the far corner of the net — and Messi went airborne to hop into his arms a few seconds later, all smiles.
And as the final minutes ticked away, Inter Miami's pink-clad fans — most wearing Messi's No. 10 on their backs — stood and stomped and cheered. South Florida has seen NFL and NBA and Major League Baseball and NHL titles in the past.
It's a soccer town now, too. Messi made that happen. Tadeo Allende scored in the sixth minute of stoppage time — off another Messi assist, of course — to make it 3-1. And when Messi lifted the trophy surrounded by his teammates, confetti rained down and fireworks boomed.
Inter Miami became the 16th franchise in the league's 30-year history to win an MLS title. And this extends a run of parity for MLS, which has seen five different franchises win championships in the last five years and eight franchises claim a title in the last nine seasons — only Columbus has won twice in that span.
It was also the culmination of a 12-year odyssey for David Beckham, part of Inter Miami’s ownership group.
He retired as a player in 2013 and his MLS contract said he could start a franchise at a discounted rate when his career ended. Beckham chose Miami and it took him years to finally make it happen; it wasn’t until January 2018 when the franchise was formally born, after he partnered with Miami businessmen Jorge Mas and Jose Mas, and even then the team didn’t have a stadium plan.
The team started play in 2020, and Messi arrived halfway through the 2023 season. Inter Miami was in last place in MLS at the time.
And then Messi arrived. The last-place team then now runs the league.
“It’s been an incredible journey,” Beckham said.
The trophy is Messi’s 47th for club and country, extending his global men’s soccer record, and some say it's actually 48 because MLS awards a trophy for winning conference titles as well. He’s now won at least 21 titles in one-match final situations, many of them with the core of this team — Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Luis Suarez and Javier Mascherano, his longtime Barcelona teammates.
Busquets and Alba are retiring and got to go out as champions. Suarez’s future is uncertain. Mascherano is the coach now, one who changed Inter Miami’s lineup and tactics halfway through the season — his first one leading the club — with this moment in mind.
And the 38-year-old Messi, the 2024 MLS MVP who seems like a lock to win the award again this season, still is like none other in the biggest moments with a contract that could have him playing with Miami into his early 40s. When next season starts, the team will be playing in a new stadium near Miami International Airport with a back-to-back title in mind.
“He’s not just here to enjoy living in Miami,” Beckham said. “His wife and the kids love Miami, but he’s come here to win, and that’s really what Leo is all about. He wants to win. He’s got that dedication, the loyalty that he shows to his teammates, to the city, to the club. Leo is a winner. It’s simple as that.”
Inter Miami went up 1-0 on an own goal in the eighth minute, before Vancouver tied it in the 60th on a score by Ali Ahmed. Another Vancouver shot hit both posts about two minutes later but stayed out, and Inter Miami got the lead for good when Messi found De Paul.
And not long after the final whistle, Messi went over to the Inter Miami supporters section and threw both his hands in the air. It was a moment 2 1/2 years in the making.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Inter Miami forward Tadeo Allende (21) celebrates his goal during the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Inter Miami forward Tadeo Allende (21) kicks the ball for a goal during the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Inter Miami midfielder Rodrigo de Paul (7) reacts at the end of the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) and his teammates celebrate after Inter Miami forward Tadeo Allende (21) scores a goal during the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Vancouver Whitecaps' Ali Ahmed (right) celebrates his goal against Inter Miami with Andres Cubas during the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)
Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) kicks a corner kicks during the first half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Inter Miami forwards Lionel Messi (10) and Tadeo Allende (21) celebrate after Vancouver Whitecaps defender Édier Ocampo scored an own goal during the first half of the MLS Cup final soccer match Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Inter Miami midfielder Rodrigo de Paul (7) celebrates a goal with forward Lionel Messi (10) and defender Jordi Alba (18) during the second half of the MLS Cup final soccer match against the Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
