Rory McIlroy’s hopes of clinching the Race to Dubai stay within the steadiness after a promising cost got here to a watery finish on the 18th gap on day three of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
McIlroy had began the day effectively adrift of the lead after a late triple-bogey setback within the second spherical, whereas chief Paul Waring set a course document.
The Northern Irishman drove the inexperienced on the 14th with a 346-yard drive earlier than knocking it in for a birdie, and had hauled himself up into competition, tieing for fourth place coming coming into the ultimate gap.
Hooking it left, the ball veered in direction of the ocean, struck a rock on the shore earlier than cannoning straight into the water, finally dropping McIlroy again down to a few beneath for the spherical.
“Playing the last two holes two over, two days in a row is not ideal,” stated McIlroy after the spherical.
“The wind received up a bit of bit this afternoon so the leaders weren’t getting away, which was good, so I used to be making a bit of little bit of a cost.
“One mistake with that drive on 18 and a lot into the wind, with the third shot the lay-up was very troublesome to attempt to tackle the water.
“An untimely mistake just like yesterday on 17 and dug myself a bit of a hole to get out of. But depending on what the leaders do, I can still go into tomorrow feeling like I have half a chance.
“I bogeyed the primary right now and doubled the final and in between that there was some actually good golf, identical as yesterday. I must put all of it collectively and play the best way I have been taking part in and preserve the massive errors and the massive numbers off my card.
“If I can do that and post a good score, you never know.”
Get the most effective costs and guide a spherical at certainly one of 1,700 programs throughout the UK & Eire
McIlroy stays nearly in competition as Waring was not in a position to preserve his record-scoring streak and couldn’t make positive aspects to stretch forward.
The Englishman, ranked 229 on this planet, carded two bogeys and noticed his five-stroke lead on the finish of day two trimmed to only one forward of Niklas Horgaard, with McIlroy 5 again from the lead.
Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood share third place together with Thorbjorn Oleson and Sebastian Sodeberg.
Who will win the Race to Dubai? Watch the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and the DP World Tour Championship this month stay on Sky Sports activities Golf. Get Sky Sports activities