Rory McIlroy let victory in the Dubai Invitational slip through his fingers after a dramatic final round in the United Arab Emirates.
With two holes to go, McIlroy was tied with South African Thriston Lawrence who sat in the clubhouse on 18 under, hoping for a play-off at minimum or a mistake from the leader that would leave him alone on top of the leaderboard.
However, at the 17th McIlroy's playing partner Tommy Fleetwood drained a big putt to make it a three-way tie before the World No. 2 followed suit seconds later with an eight-footer to take the outright lead on 19 under.
Disaster struck moments later when McIlroy found the water with his tee shot on the 18th.
Drama at the 72nd hole! 🫣@McIlroyRory finds water down the last. #DubaiInvitational pic.twitter.com/zWpfowFFKH
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) January 14, 2024
A decent drop left him with a huge up and down to make par but while his approach shot found the green, he was left with a 50-foot putt.
Fleetwood, meanwhile, had a much handier putt to make a birdie and take the tournament outright.
McIlroy addressed his putt first and while he got it close, the ball just drifted away at the final stage, leaving him two feet short.
Fleetwood stepped up next with a 10-foot, slightly downhill putt for the tournament and drained it to a chorus of cheers, taking the tournament by a single shot, with his round of 67 leaving him out on his own on 19 under.
Birdie-birdie finish.@TommyFleetwood1 wins in Dubai! 🏆#DubaiInvitational pic.twitter.com/pVB4zVhJVE
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) January 14, 2024
McIlroy had to settle for a share on second alongside Lawrence.
"I'm very happy," said Fleetwood. "It was amazing winning. Like almost everybody else in the world of golf, I don’t win anywhere near as much as I would like to but just that winning feeling is great.
"This is obviously where I live and have a lot of support. It’s great to kick off the year with a great result and push on from here.
"I was very happy with the way I played today for the large majority of the round, felt like I didn’t hole some of the putts that I wanted to. I just stayed patient and kept playing. I knew I was playing very, very well, and even the last two holes, played 17 and 18 great."
McIlroy and Fleetwood’s "Fleetwood Mac" partnership claimed two points from two in the foursomes in Rome last year as Europe beat the United States 16.5-11.5 but no quarter was given on a dramatic final day in Dubai.
Fleetwood found himself three shots clear of McIlroy as he picked up shots on the third, fifth and 10th, with the four-time major champion following gains on the third and fifth with a bogey on the sixth after finding the water.
A hat-trick of McIlroy birdies from the 11th had him in a share of top spot and while he inexplicably three-putted the 14th from two feet, he hit straight back with a 20-footer on the next.
A three putt from two feet for Rory.@TommyFleetwood1 takes the solo lead.#DubaiInvitational pic.twitter.com/hnkgCMpp18
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) January 14, 2024
Fleetwood dropped his only shot of the day on the 16th but responded from 30 feet on the 17th, as McIlroy birdied the same hole to set up the late drama.
"I’m really happy for Tommy," said McIlroy. "He’s played some incredible golf over the last year without actually getting a win. So for him to get the win here, it’s great for him and it will do his confidence a world of good and hopefully he kicks on from it.
"I think first week back out, I think you’re going to expect some of those sloppy mistakes and unfortunately for me those mistakes came at the wrong time today. But I’ll reflect on it and learn from today and there’s still a lot of good stuff in there. But just need to tidy up some of the edges and if I do that, I feel good going into next week."
Lawrence finished with a 64, while England’s Jordan Smith was at 16 under, one shot clear of former Open champion Francesco Molinari.
Tom McKibbin carded a 72 as the 21-year-old Holywood man finished on five under alongside Jeff Winther of Denmark in joint 25th.
