Rory McIlroy leads by four in Dubai

Edited by Rory McIlroy

January 31, 2015: Rory McIlroy continued to produce a spellbinding display of golf at Emirates Golf Club as a third round 66 sent him four shots clear in the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.  The World Number One, whose last six European Tour starts have yielded three wins – two of them Majors – and three seconds, had pulled a shot clear with a second round 64 and was again flawless on Saturday as he carded six birdies.

It threatened to be even better when he raced to the turn in just 30 shots, but a run of eight consecutive pars from the ninth – his longest birdie drought of the week – saw the Northern Irishman settle for a 20 under total at the scene of his first professional win back in 2009.

The 25 year old started with a birdie from 20 feet at the first, converted from five feet at the third and rolled in a 12 footer at the fifth in a sensational start.  Another gain from eight feet two holes later and a 12 foot birdie at the next suggested Ernie Els’ course record 61 might be under threat, but McIlroy found water at the par five ninth and missed a putt from inside two feet at the long next.

That began his lengthy par run, but McIlroy picked up a further shot on the 17th after driving to the apron of the green.  Dane Morten Ørum Madsen matched McIlroy’s 66 to be four shots adrift in second on 16 under, with former World Number One Lee Westwood two shots further back in third after a round of 69.

Westwood made six birdies in his third round, going some way to mitigate the damage he suffered at the 9th and 12th holes. The Englishman made six at the par-4 9th hole and added another bogey two holes later – incidentally those two scores were the only time Westwood slipped below par in the first three rounds at the Emirates Golf Club.

But it is McIlroy who is in the driving seat, after finishing day three at 20-under 196, just one shy of Stephen Gallacher’s 54 hole record at the course.