the northern irish Rory McIlroy, number 1 in the world, is the new leader of the Hero Dubai Desert Classic with 201 shots, 15 under par, at the end of the third round, thanks to a card with 65 strokes, the best of the day. Note that this Rolex Series tournament of the DP World Tour (European Tour) will end on Monday due to the continued delay of play caused by bad weather in the emirate today.
Englishmen Callum Shinkwin and Dan Bradbury followed three shots behind. McIlroy, who makes his debut on the European circuit in 2023 and is looking for his third title at the Dubai tournament, took a decisive step towards victory. Whatever happens, he will remain number one in the world ranking after the shared 7th place of Jon Rahm at Torrey Pines Farmers, in San Diego.
The Spanish Adri Arnaus and Ángel Hidalgo shared fourth place, 4 strokes behind the leaderalong with four other players.
It should be noted that Arnaus became the temporary leader of the tournament with 13 under par as a result of two birdies and an eagle in the first 8 holes of his third round, but the man from Moià lost his head with a bogey on the 9th hole and a double bogey-7 on the second par 5 of the second round, hole 13. At -10 at the table, the Catalan nevertheless straightened the card somewhat with a birdie-4 on the 18th that left him in fourth place with 205 shots , 4 from Rory.
McIlroy made eight birdies at Emirates Golf Club – four in a row from 1, three in a row from 13 and one from 17 – and none of the birdie putts came from more than 8 feet from the hole .
“This time I hit the ball with more control, which put me in a better position to attack the flagsticks and make birdies,” said the Northern Irishman. “I’m close, not quite. Right now I’m playing really efficient golf,” he added.
McIlroy, however, gave the chasers some hope by bogeying 18, for his only missed shot of this third round, after sending his second shot with a fairway wood from about 250 yards to the water front of the green. After missing a par putt from 2.5m, McIlroy had a disappointed look on his face as he walked away from the green, despite having a large lead.
The four-time major champion made the same mistake on the 18th hole in his final round of the tournament last year when he finished one stroke behind the playoff leaders and a birdie would have given him the title.
Classification on day 3 (par 72):
201 Rory McIlroy (GBR) 66 70 65
204 Dan Bradbury (GBR) 73 63 68
Callum Shinkwin (GBR) 71 66 67
205 Adri Arnaus (ESP) 67 68 70
Richard Bland (GBR) 67 67 71
Angel Hidalgo (GBR) 66 70 69
Shaun Norris (SAF) 71 67 67
Patrick Reed (USA) 66 70 69
206 Ryan Fox (NZL) 69 71 66
…
207 Pablo Larrazábal (ESP) 73 65 69
209 Adrian Otaegui (ESP) 69 70 70
210 Jorge Campillo (ESP) 70 69 71
T. Fleetwood (GBR) 68 70 72
211 MA Jimenez (ESP) 73 69 69
Lee Westwood (GBR) 71 70 70
Source: La Verdad
I’m Jason Root, a professional writer working with Today Times Live, the premier news website. I specialize in sports writing, covering the biggest stories in the world of athletics. With an eye for detail and a passion for storytelling, I provide engaging and informative articles that capture the key elements of any event or issue. My work has been featured on numerous respected websites and publications around the world.
