With wife Amy caddying, Chris DiMarco won the inaugural Abu Dhabi Championship with a score of 20 under par. The event attracted top players like Vijay Singh, Colin Montgomerie, and Sergio Garcia together with the incomparable American John Daly, Danish Ryder Cup star Thomas Bjorn, Spain''s Miguel Angel Jimenez and young guns Paul Casey and Ian Poulter.

World number one Tiger Woods won the Dubai Desert Classic at the third attempt after a play-off with defending champion Ernie Els at the Emirates Golf Club. Both players were locked at the top of the leaderboard on 19-under par (269) after a last round that was as nerve-wracking as any in the 17-year history of the Dubai Aluminium (DUBAL)-sponsored event. "It''s a great start to the year and means a lot to me - Ernie''s got three of them so it was nice of him to give me one," smiled Woods after receiving the trophy and the $400,000 winner''s cheque from His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The Shaikh Maktoum Golf Foundation aimed at identifying and nurturing future generation of Arab champions received a massive initial boost with a $ one million charity putt at the Emirates Golf Club, the home of the Dubai Desert Classic. Tiger Woods, the newly-crowned champion, and Mohammed Ali Alabbar, chairman of Golf in Dubai, the promoters and organizers of the European PGA Tour event, took part in the putting competition - sponsored by Byrne Equipment Rental LLC. Over nine million hits from all over the world were recorded on the official website of the Dubai Desert Classic -- a new milestone for the European PGA Tour event, promoted and organized by Golf in DUBAI.