NO SIGN OF RUST AS BRILLIANT RORY RACES TO THE FRONT
IF THERE were any concerns about how Rory McIlroy might re-emerge after a nine-week winter break, then they were shredded by his brilliance on day one of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship yesterday. His first competitive round of the year was wrapped up in 64 strokes, with zero blemishes, eight birdies and a considerable number of putts drained from distance. The Northern Irishman will go into today’s play as the outright leader on eight under par, with his Ryder Cup team-mate Tyrrell Hatton a stroke further back. While no good comes from grand proclamations after a single round, McIlroy has found his stride quickly in 2021 — despite a three-hour delay to the start of his round because of fog — following his decent form in the latter part of last year. ‘It was obviously a lovely way to start the year,’ said McIlroy, who made three birdie putts from outside 25ft at six, eight and 15. ‘I was getting better as 2020 went on, and honestly it was sort of disappointing that it finished when it did because I felt like I was getting right back into it. ‘I didn’t really take much time off after Augusta (where he finished fifth). I sat at home for maybe three or four days and then thought I just need to get out there and keep this going. ‘I played quite a bit over the Christmas break and felt maybe as sharp as I’ve ever done coming into the start of the season. It’s paid off early.’ McIlroy is pushing for his first win since 2019 and his first in this event after six top-three finishes in 10 attempts. Lee Westwood, playing with McIlroy, began his title defence with a 69, while the third in the group, world No 3 Justin Thomas, who lost sponsorship from Ralph Lauren after saying a homophobic slur on course in Hawaii this month, struggled to a 73.