Dubai's Thomas Bjorn Triumphs: Wins PGA Champions Tour Stifel Charity Classic Khaleej Times

Thomas Bjorn, the Danish star who has long called Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club his second home, produced a touch of brilliance on the greens to capture the $2.1 million Stifel Charity Classic on the PGA Champions Tour for his first solo victory on the circuit.

The 54-year-old, a part-time Dubai resident and former HERO Dubai Desert Classic champion, fired rounds of 65, 69, and 67 for a 12-under-par 201 total, sealing the title with a dramatic 35-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole against Australia's Cameron Percy.

The Stifel Charity Classic is part of the professional golf circuit for players aged 50 and over. It often attracts past PGA Tour stars, including major champions and Ryder Cup players, now competing on the senior circuit. The tournament has been consistently held at Norwood Hills Country Club in St. Louis, Missouri, since its inception in 2020.

Bjorn's win will resonate strongly with UAE golf fans, given his enduring ties to Dubai. Besides winning the Desert Classic in 2001, he also helped redesign the world-renowned Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club course, where he still spends much of his time when in town. His victory, therefore, feels like a triumph shared with his Dubai community.

At Norwood Hills Country Club, Bjorn closed with a composed 4-under 67 to match Percy, who birdied three of his last four holes in regulation with a blistering 64, before delivering the playoff dagger on the par-4 18th, rolling in the monster birdie putt as Percy's reply just missed the edge.

This was Bjorn's second Champions Tour win of 2025, following his team success with Darren Clarke in June, though that earlier triumph did not count as an individual title. His Champions Tour résumé is now firmly established, with two wins in just 40 starts.

Bjorn's record is glittering: 15 DP World Tour titles, including the 2001 Dubai Desert Classic, 10 additional international victories, and, of course, his role as Europe's Ryder Cup captain in the victorious 2018 campaign. Later this month, he will return to Ryder Cup duty as a Vice-Captain under Luke Donald at Bethpage in New York.

With this latest success, Bjorn climbs to sixth in the Charles Schwab Cup standings, having earned more than $1.7 million this season. Spain's Miguel Angel Jiménez continues to lead the rankings.

Reflecting on his win, Bjorn admitted to feeling the nerves:

“I felt a bit tight today on the last three or four holes. I was probably a little bit surprised when I got onto the 13th fairway and saw that I was leading by one, because I felt like I let a lot of chances slip by early on.“I was expecting someone to be 13 or 14 under par, and all of a sudden, I was there with a lead. I think that threw me a little bit, and I started playing a different kind of golf and got a bit anxious with it.”

On the back nine, Bjorn birdied holes 10 and 15 and parred the other seven holes, finishing 4-under for the day.

“Anybody that says they're not nervous in those situations, they're lying because that's what you are,” said the Dane.“That's what professional sport is about. You want to be in those situations.“You work hard to be in those situations, so that when you're in them, you try to enjoy them and balance it out, and not let the nervousness take over completely. But you've got to feel it,” concluded Bjorn.

Results

• T. Bjorn (Den): 65, 69, 67 – 201 (won playoff)

• C. Percy (Aus): 67, 70, 64 – 201

• A. Cejka (Ger): 67, 66, 69 – 202

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