The engraving has already begun on Rory McIlroy’s Race to Dubai trophy.
With only one spherical left within the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, McIlroy finds himself in a three-way tie for the lead and with the one participant who can catch him within the season-long factors race, Thriston Lawrence, eight pictures again.
But, that didn’t imply McIlroy cared little about how he completed Saturday at Jumeirah Golf Estates, the place he performed his last six holes in even par with no birdies, together with on two par-5s.
“Just a little disillusioned how I performed these final 5 holes,” stated McIlroy, who nonetheless managed 4-under 68 to push to 12 below alongside Rasmus Hojgaard and Antoine Rozner.
McIlroy’s stage end began on the par-3 thirteenth gap, the place he burned the sting from 12 ft. He then needed to lay as much as 136 yards on the par-5 14th, the place he additionally missed a 20-footer for birdie, and he didn’t stand up and down from 24 yards for birdie on the drivable par-4 fifteenth.
The par-5 ending gap irked McIlroy probably the most. He had a 6-iron in his hand from simply 187 yards out however fanned it proper right into a greenside bunker and will then solely blast out to 11 ft.
“I used to be able to hit, after which it simply appeared just like the group in entrance weren’t actually hurrying to get off the again of inexperienced and felt like I needed to wait an additional two or three minutes for that,” McIlroy stated. “So let that have an effect on me a bit bit and I got here out of the 6-iron. It’s laborious. That’s at all times a tough bunker shot going in the direction of the water there. Left myself in a great spot and hit a very good putt. Just a bit too agency on that one.”
Nonetheless, McIlroy is assured in his possibilities of profitable the Dubai double (DP World Tour Championship and Race to Dubai titles) for the third time. In his two previous victories on the DP World Tour Championship, McIlroy additionally received the Race to Dubai. He’s making an attempt to win his third straight – and sixth general – Race to Dubai.
“Tied for the lead, you recognize, going out on a golf course that I actually like and that I’ve had success on earlier than,” McIlroy stated. “Yeah, look, it’s a terrific alternative to finish the 12 months on a extremely excessive be aware. Going to go on the market tomorrow and provides it every part I can and hopefully issues fall my means and I’m capable of stand on that 18th inexperienced with each trophies.”
Rozner may need probably the most to achieve on Sunday.
Presently, the 31-year-old Frenchman is No. 15 within the DPWT’s PGA Tour Eligibility rankings, which after this week will earn the highest 10 gamers PGA Tour membership. Nevertheless, a win initiatives to bump Rozner to second in that race.
“To be sincere, I don’t know what to let you know proper now as a result of I’m going to attempt to concentrate on tomorrow and tomorrow solely,” Rozner stated. “Put a very good rating, and that’s the one factor that’s going to matter now for me. I’ve to come back out with the proper mindset, and yeah, do the very best I can, and we’ll see the way it goes ultimately.”
Lawrence and Hojgaard entered the week as the highest two gamers in that rating, adopted by Paul Waring, Niklas Norgaard, Matteo Manassero, Jesper Svensson, Thorbjorn Olesen, Rikuya Hoshino, Sebastian Soderberg and Jordan Smith.
No. 11 Tom McKibbin, the 21-year-old from Northern Eire who grew up enjoying at McIlroy’s residence membership of Holywood (McKibbin’s nickname rising up was “Lil’ Rory”), fired 67 on Saturday to maneuver right into a tie for seventh, which initiatives to maneuver him to seventh within the PGA Tour Eligibity rankings. That would depart Soderberg as the primary man out proper now.
“I knew coming into these final two occasions that I must play very well to get one as a result of the factors are so stacked. There’s loads of factors accessible. It’s really easy for folks to leap in all places,” McKibbin stated. “So I feel I used to be specializing in these two occasions, large occasions, and making an attempt to do the very best I might.”
