After teeing it up at the India Championship and celebrating his unforgettable season with a photoshoot at Northern Ireland’s Giant’s Causeway, Rory McIlroy headed to the UAE for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship this week.
But just moments after his opening tee shot, the five-time major winner found himself wrapped in a tense situation that nearly cost him a stroke.
McIlroy’s very first swing of the day disappeared into the dense grasses of Yas Links GC. What followed was a frantic search with fans, fellow players, and officials all looking for the ball.
The reigning Masters winner stumbled upon two other balls during the search, but not his own.
“Remember, only three minutes nowadays — used to be five,” said the announcer, reminding viewers of the new rule. Under Rule 18.2a, a player has just three minutes to locate their ball before it’s declared lost, resulting in a one-stroke penalty.
The search grew more frantic by the minute, and at one point, McIlroy slipped on the slope while navigating through the even rough.
“Careful, Rory,” the announcers cautioned. “We don’t wanna an ankle to go with a couple of weeks to go into this Race to Dubai.”
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As the clock ticked down, the tension was palpable. Then, just seconds before the deadline, Max Bill, caddie for player Marco Penge, finally spotted McIlroy’s ball nestled in a soggy, sloped patch of rough.
The find came just in time to avoid a penalty and reset the momentum.
McIlroy called in a rules official to assess the lie. After a quick ruling, he stepped up and delivered a brilliant recovery shot that landed cleanly on the green, finishing the hole with a hard-earned par.
That spark carried through the front nine as world No. 2 added three birdies on the front nine and kept himself in early contention.
Additionally, after leaving his driver out of the bag at the India Championship, McIlroy arrived at the Abu Dhabi event with a fresh setup. As reported by Bunkered, McIlroy was spotted carrying a brand-new, unreleased TaylorMade Qi4D driver.
“I felt like the driver was good. Obviously, a new driver in the bag this week. Felt like that worked well,” he told reporters after the Thursday round. “It could have been a lot better. I missed a lot of opportunities on the way in,” McIlroy added.
He wrapped up the day with a 4-under-par 68, finishing four shots off the pace set by Shane Lowry, Tommy Fleetwood, and three others.
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