Sharma to play with Westwood, Fleetwood in Hero Challenge in Dubai

Dubai, Nov 12 (PTI) India's Shubhankar Sharma will rub shoulders with the in-form Lee Westwood in the year's third and final Hero Challenge at the DP World Tour Championship here.

Westwood on Sunday ended a four-year title drought on European Tour with a win at the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa, while Sharma, in the same tournament, finished tied 27th, his best finish since the tied 10th in CIMB.

Westwood and Sharma apart, the field includes Europe's victorious Ryder Cup Captain Thomas Bjrn, reigning Race to Dubai champion Tommy Fleetwood, the 2018 Masters Tournament champion Patrick Reed, two-time Race to Dubai winner and 2016 Open Champion Henrik Stenson.

The six-man Hero Challenge will be held at the Atlantis, The Palm, in Dubai on Tuesday night.

The Hero Challenge which started in 2016 with one edition on the European Tour is now in its third season and there are three events each season.

All six players in the Hero Challenge field this week are making their second appearances with Westwood and Patrick Reed trying to become the first multiple champions in Hero Challenge, which has produced six different winners in six previous stagings.

Westwood will hope to carry on his form from the Nedbank Challenge where he won a title after a long time.

"It does feel great to come from such a win," said Westwood.

The Beach at Atlantis will be the third iconic venue following the Edinburgh Castle and the Canary Wharf earlier this year.

Fleetwood, who had a memorable Ryder Cup debut in Paris, winning four points our of five, said: "I took part in the Hero Challenge in Dubai last year, at the start of what turned out to be a fantastic week for me. It was a lot of fun, with a competitive edge, and I'm excited to get involved again next week."

Sharma won his first two European Tour titles this season as he established himself as Indian golf's latest star.

He said: "I'm making my debut at the DP World Tour Championship this year and the Hero Challenge will be a great way to start an exciting week. My first experience of the Hero Challenge was at Edinburgh Castle and it will be very cool to tee it up in another world-famous venue