Rory: I’m driven for hat-trick
RORY MCILROY is relishing the chance to win a third Dubai Desert Classic title ahead of today’s final round at Emirates Golf Club.
The Northern Irishman carded a 69 yesterday to get to 10 under at the event he won in 2009 and 2015, two shots behind South African Justin Harding, who maintained his halfway advantage with a 71.
McIlroy’s Ryder Cup team-mate Tommy Fleetwood was at nine under, a shot clear of three more members of the European team humbled 19-9 at Whistling Straits in defending champion Paul Casey, Tyrrell Hatton and Bernd Wiesberger.
But all eyes will be on McIlroy as the four-time Major winner looks to convert his improved ballstriking into another win at the scene of his first DP World Tour triumph.
And the 32-year-old is delighted to have another chance to complete his Desert Classic hat-trick after narrowly losing out to Li Haotong in 2018. “I’m
excited,” he said. “I had a really good chance in 2018 and let it slip through my fingers there when
Haotong won.
“It would be nice to get another win, especially here in Dubai. But it’s obviously nice to get a victory anywhere early in the season.
“So I’ve just got to go out there and try to play a good round.
“There were some good things in there, and a couple of bad things as well, and I feel like it all evened out by the end.
“It was nice to birdie the last and shoot something in the 60s.”
Harding looked set to fall away as he turned in 36 with eight pars and a bogey on the front nine, with Hatton and Lee Westwood surging to the top of the leaderboard.
But they stumbled over the line in rounds of 73 and 71 respectively, allowing Harding to capitalise with birdies on the 12th and 13th.