Shane Lowry has no plans to jeopardise his 2020 Ryder Cup campaign by chasing millions around the world during what Ernie Els once dubbed "wheelbarrow" season.

The Open champion wants to put in big performances in this week's Turkish Airlines Open and the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in a fortnight and hope that's good enough to cap a memorable year by being crowned European No 1.

While his decision not to shadow Race to Dubai leader Bernd Wiesberger to Sun City next week for the Nedbank Golf Challenge could be interpreted by some as waving the white flag, the Offaly man has his eye on the bigger picture.

Not only has he opted not to go to the Gary Player Country Club —a venue where he has broken 70 just once in 16 rounds— he's also turned down a guaranteed $100,000 to play Tiger Woods' 18-man Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, a potentially lucrative trip to the Emirates Australian Open and the chance to kick off 2020 in the PGA Tour’s Sentry Tournament of Champions.

With the Claret Jug on his kitchen sideboard, winning the Race to Dubai would not change what's already a dream season.

But he still insists he'll be giving it his all before he begins a much-needed seven-week break before reappearing on January 16 to defend the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

"The main objective for the next two tournaments is to try and win the Race to Dubai," Lowry said at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal yesterday.

"People might argue that if you are trying to win the Race to Dubai, you should be going to Sun City. But I think it is all going to come down to who plays the best in Dubai really.

"I have left Sun City the last few years not really full of confidence and struggled around there. But I like it here and will go straight to Dubai to practice next week and get ready for the final event."

Shane Lowry watches Pádraig Harrington pitching to a practice green during one of their competitive chipping competitions at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal in Belek ahead of the 2019 Turkish Airlines Open

While he is third in the Race to Dubai, just 651.1 points behind Wiesberger with 1,500 points on offer for the winner this week and even more points for the winners in Sun City and Dubai, he's not putting himself under undue pressure.

"I think it would be the icing on the cake," he said. "I’m going to give it my best shot but if I don’t win it, I won’t be too disappointed. I’ve had a decent year and I’d be pretty happy with what I’ve got at Christmas.

"It’s my main goal over the next few weeks to perform as best as I can and go to the final 18 holes in Dubai, it would be lovely to have a chance to win the Race to Dubai. To be European Number One would be really special and would add to the year I’ve had."

While Els once skipped the Volvo Masters for the Singapore Open when in contention for the 2007 Order of Merit, justifying his absence with the immortal line that “at the end of the year you've got the wheelbarrow out…you want to cash in a little bit”, Lowry has no plans to change a winning formula.

"I have had various offers from around the world to play in December," said Lowry, whose stated goal is to make the Ryder Cup team next year.

"But I've talked a lot about my end goal for the last 12 months and to give myself the best opportunity of achieving that, this is the best way to do it.

"It is very difficult to turn down the offers that you get. There are events in Australia, and you could down there and chase a bit of money but looking at the bigger picture, I have to do what's best for me.

"It's going to be a busy season next year, so maybe it will stand to me around Augusta time or around the PGA."

As Lowry was speaking, Harrington was belting drives behind him on the range and he could not resist expressing mock surprise that the Open champion wasn't going to "mix it up" early next year and change his schedule.

"My off-season is going to be between Dubai and Abu Dhabi," Lowry said, putting paid to all talk of travelling to Hawaii for the PGA Tour's curtain raising Sentry Tournament of Champions.

"There's a seven-week break, so I will have time off at home and go early to Dubai as I did this year and get ready to start in Abu Dhabi.

“We’ve had a lot of approaches and I’ve just had to say ‘no’. It’s a nice luxury to have. But I feel if I am going to perform well next year, it is something I have to do."

He has no plans host the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at Mount Juliet next year either though he loves the venue.

“I remember going to the 2002 WGC -American Express when Tiger won," he said. “It's probably been a year or two since I played the course and no doubt it is going to be a great venue and a great tournament.

"I have not been approached about hosting it. I feel I'm too young into my career to be playing host to an Irish Open and besides it would be nice to win a couple more Majors before I go down that path."