Fleetwood leads McIlroy by one after 63 in Dubai

fleetwood leads mcilroy by one after 63 in dubai

Tommy Fleetwood did not drop any shots in a superb third-round 63

Dubai Invitational third-round leaderboard

-15 T Fleetwood (Eng); -14 R McIlroy (NI); -12 T Olesen (Den); -11 Z Lombard (SA), T Lawrence (SA), J Smith (Eng); -10 S Crocker (US), Y Paul (Ger), R Hoejgaard (Den)

Selected: -8 A Meronk (Pol); -7 E Ferguson (Sco); -6 L Donald (Eng), T McKibbin (NI), N Hoejgaard (Den); -5 R Fox (NZ)

Full leaderboard

England’s Tommy Fleetwood leads Rory McIlroy by one shot after firing an eight-under-par 63 in the third round of the Dubai Invitational on Saturday.

World number 15 Fleetwood carded eight birdies in a bogey-free round to move top of the leaderboard on 15 under.

McIlroy, who led by two after both of the opening rounds, posted five birdies and one bogey in his 67 on day three.

Dane Thorbjoern Olesen is three off the lead, with Zander Lombard, Thriston Lawrence and Jordan Smith on 11 under.

Fleetwood picked up four shots on his front nine at the first, third, fourth and sixth holes and followed that up with birdies on 10, 12, 13 and 14 on the back nine.

The European Ryder Cup player goes into the final round of a 72-hole DP World Tour event in the lead for the first time since 2014.

“I played very well, got off to the perfect start and was able to build some momentum,” the English golfer told Sky Sports after his round.

“I read the greens well, got that confidence going, that rhythm and that flow. You pick up that confidence when you start holing a few putts.”

fleetwood leads mcilroy by one after 63 in dubai

Rory McIlroy will defend his Dubai Desert Classic title next week

Fleetwood trailed McIlroy by three shots ahead of the third round at the Dubai Creek Resort, the Northern Irishman having set the halfway benchmark on 10 under despite recording a quadruple bogey seven at the par-three eighth on Friday.

Four-time major winner McIlroy registered a birdie at the fourth on Saturday, but gave a shot back at the fifth with a bogey.

Further birdies at the 11th, 12th, 13th and 16th saw him maintain his challenge and set up a final day pairing with Fleetwood.

“I’m definitely well in it. I felt I did ok, had a bit of a slow start, but got things going on the back nine to try and keep up with Tommy,” commented McIlroy on Sky Sports.

“I played well on the back nine and I’m looking forward to Sunday, the buzz and the pressure of trying to win a golf tournament.

“I feel I’ve been playing pretty well, so I just need one more good day.”

The event consists of 60 professionals and 60 amateurs, with only the professionals playing the final 18 holes.

World number two McIlroy, who is playing for the first time since November, will remain in the Middle East next week to defend his Dubai Desert Classic title.

News Related

OTHER NEWS

Disrupt Burrup protesters searched and phones seized

Disrupt Burrup Hub group say police have issued move-on notices prohibiting access to the WA site. A group of climate activists and filmmakers say their phones have been seized during ... Read more »

The generation driving a ‘megatrend’ of poor mental health in Australia

As individuals, we have unique experiences that affect our mental health and wellbeing, but what about the collective experiences that influence each generation? The mental health of Australians has been ... Read more »

Geraldton meatworks set to reopen after five years in bid to meet chilled meat demand from Asia, Middle East

Syed Ghazaly wants to see the Geraldton abattoir reopen early next year to process 1,000 sheep a day. (ABC Mid West Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis) The new owners of a mothballed ... Read more »

Blues seek ‘growth’ as pre-season begins; new Hawk aims to be AFL’s serial pest

Carlton coach Michael Voss says he and his players understand there are heightened expectations on them, but insists the Blues are ready to develop individually and in their game plan. ... Read more »

Bulldogs continue signing frenzy with swap deal

The Bulldogs’ off-season signing frenzy is set to continue with the club reportedly set to land Cronnor Tracey in a swap deal. The Sydney Morning Herald reports Tracey is expected ... Read more »

Customers to weigh in as Optus disruption comes under microscope

Consumers and impacted businesses are being urged to have their say on the Optus outage, with the federal government laying out the terms of reference for its review into the ... Read more »

Released detainee unable to be contacted by authorities

It has been revealed a released immigration detainee is unable to be contacted by authorities. Border Force has referred the matter to the Federal Police as authorities are attempting to ... Read more »
Top List in the World