McIlroy in position to win European championship
Rory McIlroy is wellpositioned for another Race to Dubai title after his 7-under-par 65 on Saturday left him three shots off the lead heading into the final round at the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Jon Rahm holds a onestroke lead after a bogeyfree 65 put the Spaniard at 15-under 201 overall at Jumeirah Golf Estates as he seeks to win the event for a third time.
The top-ranked McIlroy will battle U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick on Sunday for the Harry Vardon Trophy.
“If I’m able to go out there [Sunday] and shoot a good score and get the job done, it would be a really nice way to end what’s been a great year,” said the Northern Irishman, who is trying to become the European tour’s leading player for the fourth time in his career.
Fitzpatrick trails Rahm by one shot after a 70 that included two bogeys on the front nine at the Earth Course, where he is a two-time winner.
The Englishman can clinch what would be his first Race to Dubai title if he wins Sunday and McIlroy finishes below second. A second-place finish would also be good enough for Fitzpatrick if McIlroy finishes lower than seventh.
“It would mean the world,” said Fitzpatrick, who lamented a slow start Saturday. “I’m going to need a lot of things going my way.
“I’ve given myself a chance going into tomorrow and that’s all you can do from the start of the week.”
Alex Noren (68) is two shots off the lead, and McIlroy is tied for fourth with Tyrrell Hatton (72).
McIlroy went bogeyeagle-bogey on the first three holes and had seven birdies the rest of the way.
“Overall, just hit it in the fairway a bit more today which made a big difference,” he said. “I was able to get control of my approach shots and hit them close and make some easy birdies. Just need to do more of the same tomorrow.”
McIlroy is trying to win the FedExCup and Race to Dubai in the same year for the first time, having won each event on three occasions. His last Race to Dubai title came in 2015, having also won it in 2012 and 2014.
LPGA TOUR
Leona Maguire of Ireland had four straight birdies around the turn and added a pair of birdies late for a 9-under 63, allowing her to catch Lydia Ko in the CME Group Tour Championship and set up a duel for the richest prize in women’s golf.
At stake on Sunday at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples is $2 million to the winner.
Maguire, one of 11 firsttime winners on the LPGA Tour this year, is too far back in the points race to win LPGA Player of the Year, though $2 million in a single day would make up for that. That would be nearly twice what Maguire has made in 23 previous events.
Ko had a five-shot lead to start the third round — seven shots ahead of Maguire — and made a mixture of birdies and bogeys that stalled her round. She fell one shot behind Maguire until chipping to tap-in range on the par-5 17th. She finished with a 70.
They were at 15-under 201 in what shaped up as a two-player race for the $2 million.
No one else was closer than five shots to them. Former U.S. Women’s Open champion Jeongeun Lee6 had a 68 and Gemma Dryburgh of
Scotland had a 69. They were at 206.
The forecast for Sunday was for rain and 20 mph gusts.
“Nothing I’m not used to from Ireland,” Maguire said when she finished her round. “We’ll see where Lydia gets at the end of the day, but ultimately just go out and play as well as I possibly can, and especially if there’s bad weather, that’s all you can control. Looking forward to one last walk of the season tomorrow.”
Brooke Henderson kept her slim hopes alive for player of the year. The Canadian, who had to withdraw last week with a back injury, had two eagles in her round of 65 and was at 9-under 207.
Henderson will have to win the CME Group Tour Championship and have Ko finish third or worse to win player of the year.
“If I could have another day like this tomorrow, that would be really nice,” she said.
Ko came into the week with a one-point advantage over Minjee Lee for player of the year. Lee, the Australian who won the U.S. Women’s Open and leads the LPGA money list, has fallen nine shots behind and is all but certain to be eliminated.
Ko is a lock to win the Vare Trophy for having the lowest scoring average. A victory would send her season earnings to more than $4.3 million.
PGA TOUR
Patrick Rodgers ran off four straight birdies late in his round and finished with a par save for a 6-under 64, giving him a share of the lead with Ben Martin in the RSM Classic in St. Simons Island, Georgia, and another chance at his first PGA Tour title.
Martin was poised to match that score until he came up short on the 18th green, chipped to just inside 5 feet and missed the par putt. He had a 65.
They were at 14-under 198 in the final PGA Tour event of the year, and it was far from a two-man race.
Ten players were within two shots of the lead, a group that included Sahith Theegala (68),
Brian Harman (64) and even Harry Higgs, who was atop the leaderboard at the start of the day and had a 25-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 70.
Cole Hammer, who graduated from Texas in May and is playing on a sponsor exemption, was tied for the lead going into the weekend. He was 4-over through five holes and managed a 72. Even so, he was only four shots behind.
Rodgers hit the reset button after last season ended in August, setting up a plan with swing coach Jeff Smith that entails making incremental improvements. It appears to be working. He tied for third in Bermuda three weeks ago and has been a steady presence during the fall events.