DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)—Lee Westwood took advantage of some shaky
play from Rory McIlroy and Thomas Bjorn, shooting a 5-under 67 for a one-stroke
lead on Rafael Cabrera-Bello after the third round of the Dubai Desert Classic.

Westwood was three shots behind McIlroy and Bjorn at the start of the round
but closed the gap with three birdies in his first four holes. The third-ranked
Englishman birdied the 13th for a share of the lead with Bjorn and led when the
Dane bogeyed the 15th.

“I got off to a good start,” Westwood said. “The only time I dropped two
shots was when I hit two poor drives on 6 into the left rough, got a heavy lie
and at 8 hit it into the sand on right. Other than that, very solid and gave
myself lots of birdie chances.”

Joining Cabrera-Bello at one-shot back were Stephen Gallacher (68) and
Marcel Siem (68). McIlroy, who struggled early, finished with a 72 to trail
Westwood by two shots. Bjorn was three behind the leader with a 73.

Coming into Saturday, it appeared Westwood’s biggest challengers this
weekend would be U.S. Open champion McIlroy and Bjorn, who beat Tiger Woods in
2001 to take the Dubai title.

But McIlroy’s tee shot on No. 7 went into the water for his first bogey. He
had three more bogeys on the back nine.

“It was pretty ragged to say the least,” McIlroy said. “I think the
conditions were a little tougher, the wind got up. The greens got a little
firmer, pin positions were a little tougher … just definitely didn’t come as
easy to me as it did the first couple of days.”

With McIlroy faltering, it seemed Bjorn would take advantage. He took the
lead with a birdie at No. 7 and added another birdie on No. 10. But he struggled
on the remainder the back nine after a tee shot in the bunker led to a bogey on
15. Bjorn added two more bogeys in his last three holes.

McIlroy stayed in contention, making three birdies on the back nine,
including the 18th. McIlroy said he had a similar experience in Hong Kong where
he shot a 65 to win the tournament, so he’s confident of claiming his first
victory in Dubai since 2009.

“Today is just not going to be a day where you hit it well and you’re going
to make plenty of birdies and give yourself opportunities,” he said. “A day
like today, you just have to try to stay as close to the leaders as possible and
not let them get away from you. That’s what we tried to do today, and luckily
I’m only two back.”

Joining McIlroy were Martin Kaymer (70), Scott Jamieson (70) and Joel
Sjoholm (66). Bjorn was in a three-way tie for ninth with George Coetzee (69)
and Ben Curtis (67).

With 21 European Tour titles, Westwood has more experience than the three
players who trail by one shot. They’ve earned a combined three titles.

“Yeah, I know how to play with the lead. What did I win, four times last
year?” Westwood said, with a wry smile. “When I get a chance, I’m pretty good
at finishing off.

“I’ve won (38) times (worldwide). You know, that’s not somebody that’s not
good with a lead. You get used to knowing what to do; when to press, when not to
press, when to be patient.”

———

Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mcasey1

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)—Rafael Cabrera-Bello made nine birdies in
his first 11 holes to finish at 9-under 63 Thursday for a two-shot lead after
the first round of the Dubai Desert Classic.

Marcel Siem and Scott Jamieson each shot 65.

U.S. Open Champion Rory McIlroy was three shots back, making seven birdies
on the last 10 holes. He’s tied for fourth with six other players, including
2010 PGA Champion Martin Kaymer.

“I didn’t really get much going on the front nine,” McIlroy said. “And
then I sort of got a few things going after that.”

Cabrera-Bello said he briefly thought about scoring 59, one shot better than
his career-best 60 that helped him win the Austrian Open. But he ended the round
with seven straight pars.

“It felt simple. I know it’s not and I know it’s really hard to repeat,”
the 119th-ranked Cabrera-Bello said. “But it felt like everything was going
nice and smooth today.”

Third-ranked Lee Westwood had a 69, and defending champion Alvaro Quiros
shot a 70. Robert Rock, who beat Tiger Woods and McIlroy at Abu Dhabi on Jan.
29, trails by 10 shots.

Cabrera-Bello said his consistent short game helped put him in contention
for a second European Tour win and first since 2009. The 27-year-old Spaniard
chipped within 3 feet on his fourth hole for birdie, then sank a 20-foot birdie
putt on his fifth and made a 15-foot putt on his eighth.

Cabrera-Bello said it’s too soon to start thinking about winning the
tournament.

“I don’t think anyone who plays good in any tournament in the first round
thinks about winning,” Cabrera-Bello said. “I’m sure that is one thing you
shouldn’t do. … You only need to think about how many times the first-round
leader ends up winning, which I don’t think is a very good percentage.”

McIlroy, who won the tournament in 2009 and finished second last month at
the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, started with six straight pars and a bogey. He
sank clutch birdie putts on No. 9 and 11 and missed a hole-in-one on the par-3,
15 by a foot.

Kaymer started slowly with a birdie and bogey on the front nine but had four
birdies to go with a bogey on the back. He finished off with an eagle after an
impressive drive on 18.

“I think I played very well. I hit a lot of good golf shots, hit a lot of
good iron shots,” Kaymer said. “I had plenty of chances today.”

Siem managed to upstage his more famous German compatriot with his 65. He
made a long birdie putt on No. 2, then chipped in on No. 6 for the third of his
four birdies on the front. The 223rd-ranked Siem challenged for the lead with
three birdies on his last four holes. But he found the water on the 18th with
his second shot and finished with a bogey.

“It was one of my best days of golf to be honest,” Siem said. “At the
beginning, I didn’t hit all the fairways. But on the back nine, I hit all the
fairways and my iron shots were all straight at it.”

Jamieson had five birdies and an eagle in a bogey-free 65.

Rock didn’t have much luck during his round.

“It was a pretty poor round of greens today. Hit the ball quite nice, hit
some good shots but my chipping was bad,” Rock said. “Ten is a long ways back.
There are a lot of people under par, so I have a lot to do.”

———

Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mcasey1

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP)—Tiger Woods roared into contention in the
second round of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship Friday, stringing together three
birdies on the back nine to sit two shots behind surprise leader Thorbjorn
Olesen of Denmark.

Woods, who was three shots back after the first round, finished with a
3-under 69 for a two-round total of 139. He started slowly, but came to life on
the back nine, hitting three birdies over five holes. He also dropped a shot on
the 16th after an errant drive landed in deep rough.

“I thought I played well today,” Woods said after saving par on 18. “I
made a couple putts here and there but it was tough out there. The greens got a
little quicker, a little bit drier and the rough is certainly getting deeper and
more lush.”

Olesen (67) is on a 7-under total of 137 and has a one-shot lead over two
players including 18-year-old Italian Matteo Manassero (65). Woods is another
shot back in fourth, tied with six other players including Northern Irishman
Rory McIlroy (72) and Robert Karlsson of Sweden (72).

A group of five players including Spain’s Sergio Garcia (69), Ireland’s
Padraig Harrington (69) and South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel (70) is further shot
back on 140.

It was a day of mixed fortunes at the Abu Dhabi Golf Course. McIlroy’s round
was marred by a two-shot penalty for brushing away sand in front of his ball
that sat on the fringe on the 9th. Meanwhile, fourth-ranked Martin Kaymer failed
to make the cut in a tournament he has won three times. And then a relatively
unknown 22-year-old Dane surged into the lead of the star-studded tournament in
a bid to win his first event on the European Tour.

Much of the attention, though, was on Woods as he bids to follow up his
season-ending victory at the Chevron World Challenge with another win. The
Chevron success ended a two-year run without a victory, a period in which the
14-time major winner endured a series of injuries and saw his personal life
collapse.

Woods had a bogey-free first round but admitted the greens were fooling him
for much of the day. He seemed to sort them out on Friday, making several key
putts including a 10-footer for his final birdie on 15. But he said players
“were grinding along” and that it was anyone’s tournament to win with the
leaderboard featuring nine players within two shots of Olesen.

Still, the former No. 1-ranked golfer said he felt he had come a long way in
the past year. He is optimistic the changes in his swing instituted by new coach
Sean Foley are starting to pay dividends.

“Certainly I have much more experience within the system and I’ve grown to
understand what Sean wants me to do and how my body is going to do those things
and produce the numbers he wants me to produce,” Woods said. “If you would
have asked me (six to eight months ago) if I would understand the system as well
as I do and the numbers I’m producing, I probably would have said no … Now I
do and when we talk, it’s very simple.”

While Woods was the picture of consistency Friday, the big-hitting McIlroy
took fans on a rollercoaster ride after holding a share of the lead after the
first round.

The 22-year-old U.S. Open champion, playing with Woods for a second day,
opened with a bogey and double bogey after an errant drive and some shaky
putting. He bounced back with three birdies before carding a double bogey on the
9th when he was given a two-shot penalty for brushing away the sand in front of
his ball—after playing partner Luke Donald spotted the infraction and called
him on it.

But rather than get rattled, McIlroy went on to produce two birdies on the
next three holes to end at even par.

“Obviously that wasn’t the best start, 3 over through three and I battled
back really well to get it back to even par after eight,” McIlroy said. “Made
a mistake on 9 when I brushed the sand off the green, wasn’t thinking clearly
and a penalty there. Felt like I played the back nine well, and even par,
considering everything that happened out there today is a decent score.”

Players are allowed to brush away sand on the green but not on the fringe.

“I mean, my ball was just maybe six feet off the green and there was a lot
of sand in between my ball and the hole. I just brushed the sand and Luke was
like, ‘I don’t think you can brush sand off the fringe’,” he said. “And I’m
like, ‘Oh, yeah, you’re right’. Just one of those things … You’re going to get
a bad deal every now and again, and just have to take it on the chin and try and
come back and get the shots back as quick as possible.”

Kaymer headlined the list of 60 players to miss the cut of 2 over, shooting
a 1-over 73 to leave him 6 over for the tournament. The 27-year-old German, who
had come in as a favorite after his past success on the course, blamed putting
for his troubles, saying that he “didn’t have a lot of birdie chances” on
Friday. He said he was hoping to score well but shrugged off his troubles as “a
little bit of a rough period for me these last couple of days.”

“Expectations were very high,” he said. “When you go to a tournament
where you’ve played very well in the past, you expect you’re going to be
successful somehow and it hasn’t happened this week. It’s OK. I practiced hard
in the winter and it will come together at some stage.”

British Open winner Darren Clark also missed the cut after shooting a 9-over
two-round total of 153. Others failing to qualify for play on the weekend
included Colin Montgomerie of Scotland (147), Edoardo Molinari of Italy (149),
American Todd Hamilton (149) and Michael Campbell of New Zealand (149).

———

Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mcasey1

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP)—Rory McIlroy opened his season by
outplaying Tiger Woods in the first round of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship,
shooting a 5-under 67 Thursday for a share of the lead.

Woods shot a 70 in the threesome with McIlroy and top-ranked Luke Donald,
who finished with a 71. Robert Karlsson tied for the lead, with Gareth Maybin
and Richard Finch one shot back.

Woods played bogey-free golf that produced few momentous shots and two
birdies. He missed several birdie chances, including a 6-footer on his ninth,
the 18th hole.

“Hit the ball well all day today. It was a good ball-striking round,”
Woods said. “I had a hard time reading the greens out there. The greens were
pretty grainy and I just had a hard time getting a feel for it. Toward the end I
hit some pretty good putts, but overall I got fooled a lot on my reads.”

McIlroy, the U.S. Open champion who has had three top-five finishes in Abu
Dhabi, had three birdies on his first four holes but erratic driving led to two
bogeys on the next four. He steadied himself with three birdies on his back
nine, including a chip-in on No. 8 from just off the green.

“It’s a nice way to start the competitive season, I suppose,” McIlroy
said. “I didn’t feel like I played that good. I definitely didn’t strike the
ball as good as I have been the last couple of weeks. I think it’s just because
your first competitive round of the season, card in your hand, you can get a
little bit tentative or a little apprehensive.”

Woods also struggled with his approaches shots at the National Course at the
Abu Dhabi Golf Club, which was playing much tougher than in the past with
narrower fairways and thicker rough. That resulted in many 25- and 30-footers
that he couldn’t sink.

McIlroy calls Woods a friend and was chatting with his playing partner for
much of the day. He said he didn’t take much satisfaction from beating him in
the first round.

“If it was the last day of the tournament and you’re both going in there
with a chance to win, I would take a lot of pride from that, obviously,” said
the 22-year-old Northern Irishman.

“But the first day of a tournament is a little different,” he said.
“You’re just going out there and playing and seeing what you can do. But,
hopefully, I can get myself into position where I do play with him on a Sunday
and see how I get on.”

After a seven-week layoff, Woods said he’s fitter than he has been in years.
He’s coming off a dramatic victory at the Chevron World Challenge last month,
which ended a two-year title drought.

With the win, Woods moved to 25th in the world after briefly falling outside
the top 50 last year. Before the victory, Woods finished third at the Australian
Open and delivered the clinching point for the American team in the Presidents
Cup.

“It felt the same as it had from Oz to the World Challenge to here,” Woods
said of his game. “I controlled my ball all day and just had a hard time
getting a feel for these greens. They are grainy enough where I just didn’t
quite read them right, and I hit them good, and then the grain would take it,
not take it. It was just difficult.”

Sergio Garcia (71) had a hole-in-one on the 12th hole but otherwise
struggled. KJ Choi, Colin Montgomerie and Padraig Harrington joined the group at
71.

Second-ranked Lee Westwood (72) and defending champion Martin Kaymer (77)
got off to poor starts and never challenged for the lead.

Westwood had four bogeys to go with two birdies on the front nine. Kaymer,
who shot 24-under 264 last year to win the tournament for the third time,
started with a double-bogey when his drive went out of bounds.

———

Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mcasey1

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP)—Tiger Woods weathered putting woes to
open his 2012 season with a 2-under 70 at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship on
Thursday, three shots behind clubhouse leaders Rory McIlroy and Robert Karlsson.

Woods played bogey-free golf that produced few momentous shots and two
birdies. He missed several birdie chances, including a 6-footer on his ninth,
the 18th hole.

“Hit the ball well all day today. It was a good ball-striking round,”
Woods said. “I had a hard time reading the greens out there. The greens were
pretty grainy and I just had a hard time getting a feel for it. Toward the end I
hit some pretty good putts, but overall I got fooled a lot on my reads.”

McIlroy, the U.S. Open champion who has had three top-five finishes in Abu
Dhabi, made three birdies in his first four holes, but erratic driving led to
two bogeys on the next four. He steadied himself with three birdies on his back
nine, including a chip-in on No. 8 from just off the green.

Karlsson also shot a 67, one shot ahead of Gareth Maybin and Richard Finch
of England. Sergio Garcia, who was still out on the course, moved to 2-under
when he had a hole-in-one on No. 12, hitting a 7-iron on the 193-yard par 3.

Top-ranked Luke Donald (71) was four shots behind, while second-ranked Lee
Westwood and fourth-ranked Martin Kaymer were still on the course.

“It’s a nice way to start the competitive season, I suppose,” McIlroy
said. “I didn’t feel like I played that good. I definitely didn’t strike the
ball as good as I have been the last couple of weeks. I think it’s just because
your first competitive round of the season, card in your hand, you can get a
little bit tentative or a little apprehensive.”

McIlroy, who calls Woods a friend and was chatting with his playing partner
for much of the day, made little of beating him in the first round.

“If it was the last day of the tournament and you’re both going in there
with a chance to win, I would take a lot of pride from that obviously,” said
the 22-year-old Northern Irishman, who has talked of idolizing Woods as a
teenager and following him during a Dubai tournament when he played as an
amateur in 2006 and 2007.

Coming off a seven-week layoff, Woods has said he is fitter than he has been
in years and brimming with confidence following his dramatic victory at the
Chevron World Challenge last month. That ended a two-year run without a win.
Before last month’s win, Woods finished third at the Australian Open, and then
delivered the clinching point for the American team in the Presidents Cup.

Since the Chevron, Woods has moved up to 25th in the world after falling
outside the top 50 last year.

“It felt the same as it had from Oz to the World Challenge to here,” Woods
said of his game. “I controlled my ball all day and just had a hard time
getting a feel for these greens. They are grainy enough where I just didn’t
quite read them right, and I hit them good, and then the grain would take it,
not take it. It was just difficult.”

The 27th-ranked Karlsson went to 5-under when he holed a 50-foot putt on the
8th hole, one of his seven birdies on the day. The Swede also had two bogeys.

“I’m very proud of myself, managed to turn something that wasn’t very good
into something very good on the scorecard and very happy with that,” said
Karlsson, who joined the PGA Tour and moved his family to the United States last
year. “I don’t think we are going to play many tournaments this year that’s
going to be a stronger field than this.”

———

Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mcasey1

LONDON (AP)—Northern Irish golf stars Darren Clarke and Rory McIlroy are
among the sports figures honored by Queen Elizabeth II in her New Year list,
after claiming their first major titles.

The 43-year-old Clarke was made an Officer of the Order of the British
Empire after ending his long wait for a major victory by winning the British
Open at Royal St. George’s.

“It is a great honor and a fantastic way to end a great year. I am very
proud for me and my family,” Clarke said. “It was a life-changing moment
really and in many ways my feet have not touched the floor since. And now
this.”

Clarke lifted the claret jug weeks after the 22-year-old McIlroy’s
eight-shot victory in the U.S. Open at Congressional. The second-youngest major
winner since 1934, McIlroy was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire.

“It is quite humbling to be included in such a list of worthy recipients,”
McIlroy said. “Many people on the honors list have made huge personal
sacrifices and contributed significantly to society during their lives. I feel
very fortunate to be in their company.”

With less than seven months to go before the start of the 2012 Olympics in
London, two men involved in the organization of the games received knighthoods.

Charles Allen, a board member on the London Organizing Committee, and John
Armitt, the chairman of the Olympic Delivery Authority who is recognized for
services to engineering and construction, both become sirs.

World taekwondo champion Sarah Stevenson, who will be one of Britain’s
leading medal prospects in London, received an MBE at the end of a year in which
both her parents died.

Former Formula One world champion Nigel Mansell was made a Commander of the
Order of the British Empire for services to children and young people.

The 58-year-old Mansell is the president of UK Youth, a charity that
provides tools to help build young people’s self-esteem, aptitude and skills.

LONDON (AP)—A year that witnessed the passing of one European golfing legend
may have heralded the arrival of another.

The death of Spanish great Seve Ballesteros in May following a three-year
battle with a brain tumor hit the golfing fraternity hard, although the
outpouring of grief for the popular winner of five majors extended far beyond
sport.

It was fitting, then, that the player who did so much to revive a flagging
European game in the 1980s thanks to his flamboyant style and good looks should
die in a year in which the continent’s leading players maintained their hold
over the Americans.

By becoming the first player to officially top the money lists on both sides
of the Atlantic in the same year, England’s Luke Donald comfortably ended a
breakthrough 2011 as the world’s top-ranked player.

However, it was one of Donald’s Ryder Cup teammates who really arrived on
the world stage.

Rory McIlroy, a mop-haired Northern Irishman, triggered frenzied talk of
becoming a genuine successor to Tiger Woods by powering to an eight-shot win at
the U.S. Open at Congressional. At 22, he was the second-youngest player to win
a major since 1934.

What made McIlroy’s first Grand Slam success all the more remarkable was
that it came two months after he blew a four-shot lead in the final round of the
Masters, shooting a closing 80 in one of golf’s more memorable meltdowns.

“He’s a breath of fresh air for the game,” said Graeme McDowell, McIlroy’s
close friend who won the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in 2010. “Perhaps we’re
ready for golf’s next superstar and maybe Rory is it.”

One of the sport’s cleanest hitters, McIlroy has every shot in his bag and
the clinic he produced at Congressional brought back memories of Woods’ 15-shot
win at Pebble Beach in 2000.

The American’s haul of 14 majors—four short of Jack Nicklaus—is now in
the sights of McIlroy, who finished the year as the world’s second-ranked
player.

“I was trying to go out there today and emulate him in some way,” McIlroy
said of Woods after his final round at the U.S. Open.

So what of the former No. 1? By his very high standards, it was another year
to forget.

No major wins, more injuries (leg, knee, Achilles tendon) and even a fine
for spitting on the green during the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic in
February, further tarnishing his name almost a year after vowing to improve his
behavior following the sex scandal that ended his marriage.

What’s more, he fired longtime caddie Steve Williams—much to the New
Zealander’s dismay—and replaced him with Joe LaCava, who used to carry the bag
of Fred Couples and Dustin Johnson.

Woods did at least break a winless streak of 107 weeks by capturing the
Chevron World Challenge in December, lifting him to No. 22 in the rankings and
displaying some of his old magic, but there appears little chance of him
dominating the game as he did for so long.

Instead, it is Donald who is leading the way.

Shrugging off his “underachiever” tag, the 34-year-old Englishman won four
titles, demonstrated amazing consistency by compiling 20 top-10 finishes from 26
tournaments played and topped both money lists.

Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer held the No. 1 spot early in the year but
were soon topped by Donald, whose imperious short game often made up for lack of
distance off the tee.

A failure to land that elusive major will still dog Donald, however,
especially in an age when players are capitalizing on Woods’ troubles.

All four major winners in 2011 were first-timers—and no champion was more
popular than 42-year-old Darren Clarke at a wet and windy British Open.

Puffing away on a cigarette as he ambled along the undulating fairways of
Royal St. George’s in often stormy conditions on the southeast coast, Clarke was
a picture of contentment as he sealed a three-shot win, adding another name to
the roll call of recent major champions from tiny Northern Ireland.

Charl Schwartzel of South Africa profited from McIlroy’s misfortune to win
at Augusta by two strokes over Adam Scott and the emerging Jason Day, who also
finished runner-up at Congressional.

In the final major of the year, rookie Keegan Bradley finally gave the
United States something to shout about by winning the PGA Championship to end
the longest American drought in the majors.

Europe’s women regained the Solheim Cup, upsetting the United States 15-13
in County Meath, Ireland, with a dramatic late surge, and the Americans also
surrendered the Walker Cup, losing 14-12 to the amateurs from Britain & Ireland
in Aberdeen, Scotland.

The United States ended the year by retaining the Presidents Cup with a
19-15 victory over the International team—Woods clinching the winning point—
but they should find things much tougher in the Ryder Cup in Medinah, near
Chicago, next year.

That will provide another chance for golf to honor the memory of
Ballesteros, a Ryder Cup stalwart. It won’t need a second invitation to do that.

By Bernie McGuire

Dec 16 (Reuters) – Rory McIlroy said he wept after
letting victory slip from his grasp at the U.S. Masters in April
and the world number two is hoping the only golf-related crying
he does in the future will be tears of joy.

In a frank review of his season, the 22-year-old Briton
acknowledged he “choked” by carding a closing 80 at Augusta
after going into the last round holding a four-stroke lead.

“I felt like crying because even after my triple-bogey on
the 10th hole I thought I still had chances on 13, 15 and 16,”
McIlroy told reporters.

“But what happened on 13 was the one that took all that
away,” he said referring to the watery grave he found at the
par-five hole.

“I didn’t actually cry, not until the next morning. I didn’t
even speak to mum and dad until then.

“They might have said something like, ‘It’ll be okay’, but I
said ‘No, it won’t be okay’,” McIlroy added.

“At the time I felt it might be the only chance I had to win
a major and I’d blown it. I had so many thoughts and emotions
going through my head that day.”

McIlroy finished a distant 10 strokes behind the winner,
South African Charl Schwartzel.

Asked if he would ever weep on the course, McIlroy replied:
“Hopefully they will be tears of joy as golf is not worth crying
over – it’s only a game”.

McIlroy bravely buried his Masters demons by romping to an
eight-shot victory at the U.S. Open in Maryland in June to
clinch the first major title of his career.

“I felt something to prove going into the U.S. Open, extra
motivation, maybe even a little redemption to make amends for
what happened at Augusta,” said the Northern Irishman.

“I wanted to prove a lot of people wrong and to prove
something to myself, that I wasn’t one of those players who
crumbles under the pressure, who folds or chokes.

“I hate using the word choke but that’s exactly what
happened at the Masters.”

McIlroy said he sought the help of American coach Dave
Stockton after his Augusta meltdown.

“I went to the U.S. Open needing to improve my putting so
that’s why I went to see Stockton,” the youngster explained.

“He was a big help and I knew if I putted well the first
three days I would be out of sight.

“I gave it my best again in terms of preparation and felt
the Congressional course set up well for me.

“It was just great to have a chance to win again, to test
myself after what happened at Augusta, and what happened at
Augusta won’t happen again,” said McIlroy.

(Editing by Tony Jimenez. To comment on this story:
sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)—U.S. Open champion Rory McIlroy shot a 30 on
the back nine Thursday at the Dubai World Championship to gain the early
advantage over top-ranked Luke Donald in the battle for the European money
title.

The 22-year-old McIlroy holed six birdies—including sinking a 20-foot putt
at the last—on the back nine to hit a 6-under 66 and sit third behind leader
Peter Hanson of Sweden (64) and 1999 British Open champion Paul Lawrie of
Scotland (65).

The Northern Irishman, who came from behind to win last week’s Hong Kong
Open, made a “couple of silly mistakes” on the front nine. He had a double
bogey on the second hole and then bogeyed No. 8 after hitting over the back of
the green.

“It was a perfect start to the tournament for me,” said McIlory, who has
been complaining of fatigue from a lingering virus. “To shoot a great score
like that really sets me up nicely for the next three days. The back nine was
just pretty much flawless. I held some really, really nice putts. Just giving
myself chances and opportunities for birdies, and lucky enough I was able to
make a few.”

Donald sank four birdies on the front nine but struggled on the back, making
three bogeys in a row to shoot a 72 for a share of 26th place.

The 34-year-old Englishman played his first tournament last week in South
Africa after a five-week break so he could attend the birth of his second
daughter and bury his father, who died unexpectedly last month.

“A mixture of two halves really,” Donald said. “I played solid the front
nine and hit a few shots that cost me, poor drives on 14 and 15 and it was bit
of a loose back nine, unfortunately. But trying to get better from here on
out.”

McIlroy’s performance keeps the Race To Dubai alive. He must win the $7.5
million tournament and hope Donald finishes outside the top nine. Should Donald
win the Race To Dubai, he would become the first to win both the European and
American money titles.

Two years ago, McIlroy lost the money title when Lee Westwood won in Dubai
to move past him. This time, he is happy to be in second spot.

“It’s sort of taken the pressure off me,” McIlroy said. “I’m sort of
like, well, I’m not 100 percent and if that doesn’t quite happen, it doesn’t
happen and there is nothing I can do about it. You know, so it takes the
pressure off in that way that you can just go about your game and try and play
as well as you can.”

Donald acknowledged it was a challenge playing alongside someone in such
great form as McIlroy.

“It’s always hard playing with Rory,” he said. “It almost feels like a
bit of a match-play kind of scenario. But the goal is to concentrate on myself
and just try and do what I can do to try and win this tournament. Hopefully the
rest will take care of itself.”

The only other golfer to have a run like McIlroy was Hanson, who made six
birdies on the back nine and eight overall. The 49th-ranked Swede is looking for
his first win this year and fifth career victory on the tour.

“Overall, it’s the best golf I’ve played,” Hanson said. “It’s a quite
demanding golf course and the wind picked up a little bit over the back nine, so
I’m very, very happy with the way I struck the ball and I rolled in a few
putts.”

Lawrie, who briefly held the clubhouse lead, was a surprise second
considering the 163rd-ranked Scot has won only once this year and hasn’t had a
top-10 finish since coming fifth at the Iberdrola Open in May.

“I played really nice today. Hit the ball solid,” Lawrie said. “Gave
myself an awful lot of chances out there, especially a wee run from the fifth
through to the 14th.”

Sergio Garcia of Spain is three shots off the pace, while Ross Fisher,
Robert Rock and Alvaro Quiros are a further shot back at 4 under in the
season-ending tournament.

The third-ranked Westwood and No. 4 Martin Kaymer both shot 73s to be tied
for 35th.

Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mcasey1