Rory McIlroy has reiterated his love for the Middle East and says he is looking forward to returning to the UAE, as the Northern Irishman begins to see encouraging signs in his game ahead of the DP World Tour’s season finale.
Rory McIlroy’s attention may currently be fixed on the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, but the UAE is already firmly on his radar.
Following his opening round at the West Course, McIlroy addressed the prospect of returning to the Middle East later this season and made his feelings clear.
“I love the Middle East. I have a lot of friends there, and I’m looking forward to going back for sure.”
His comments come with the DP World Tour’s end-of-season events in Abu Dhabi and Dubai approaching and McIlroy once again pursuing the Race to Dubai title. Ahead of Wentworth, he confirmed that claiming an eighth Race to Dubai crown remains a major target as he attempts to close the gap on current leader Patrick Reed.
McIlroy backs UAE return
Asked whether the current situation in the region gave him any concerns about travelling to Dubai, McIlroy said he would put his faith in the relevant authorities and safety assessments.
“If the local governments feel like it’s safe to put on these events, they are not going to put their citizens or people visiting in harm’s way, I imagine,” he said.
The subject has become a talking point at Wentworth after Matt Fitzpatrick expressed reservations about travelling to the Middle East for the DP World Tour’s season-ending events. The Tour is monitoring the situation and taking professional travel advice.
McIlroy’s response was markedly straightforward: the Middle East remains a part of the world with which he has a long association, both professionally and personally.
For golf fans in the UAE, his commitment will be particularly welcome given his extraordinary history in the region and the possibility that another Race to Dubai battle could reach its conclusion in Dubai.
Signs that McIlroy’s game is returning
There was also plenty in McIlroy’s opening round at Wentworth to suggest his game is moving in the right direction.
He raced to five under par through his opening ten holes before increasingly blustery conditions made the West Course more difficult. McIlroy admitted he was disappointed not to finish a couple of shots better but was encouraged by what he saw.
“There was a lot of good stuff in there,” he said. “Overall, I saw some good signs in my game and saw some putts go in which was encouraging compared to last week. Definitely a score to build on as the week goes on.”
That improvement had already been hinted at 24 hours earlier.
McIlroy produced a spectacular 12-under-par 60 in Wednesday’s Pro-Am, including an eagle and ten birdies. Although it cannot count as an official Wentworth course record because it came in the Pro-Am, it provided a significant indication that his scoring touch is returning.
He then carried much of that momentum into Thursday, opening with two birdies in his first four holes before reaching five under through ten.
For McIlroy, seeing putts disappear may be just as important as the numbers on the scorecard.
“I felt better with the putter than I did last week,” he explained. “I brought that feeling for the most part into today and [I’m] a bit disappointed with the way I finished. But still a good score to build on and some very good signs in the game.”
McIlroy playing the long game with swing changes
McIlroy, however, isn’t pretending everything has suddenly clicked.
He revealed that technical changes to his swing remain very much a work in progress and believes it could take several months before he is completely comfortable with them under tournament pressure.
“It definitely still looks better on the range than what I get out there on the course,” he admitted.
His focus is therefore as much on the long-term picture as immediate results.
McIlroy believes that if it took five or six months for an unwanted habit to become ingrained, it could take a similar amount of time to remove it completely.
There is an obvious destination in mind: Augusta National next April.
“There’s plenty of time until I ramp up for the Masters again next year,” he said. “But obviously in the meantime, there’s a lot of golf to play and some stuff to win.”
That final sentence could prove particularly relevant to the UAE.
Road to Dubai gathering momentum
McIlroy arrived at Wentworth second in the Race to Dubai standings and has made no secret of his desire to add an eighth season-long DP World Tour crown to his record.
With his swing beginning to show encouraging signs and the putter warming up, the timing could hardly be more intriguing.
The Middle East has provided the backdrop to many significant moments in McIlroy’s career, and the UAE will once again play a central role in deciding the DP World Tour season.
For now, McIlroy’s immediate task is turning the flashes of quality at Wentworth into four consistent rounds.
But with a 60 in the Pro-Am followed by an encouraging start to the BMW PGA Championship, there are signs that one of the game’s biggest names is beginning to find his rhythm again.
And if that upward trajectory continues over the coming weeks, McIlroy could arrive back in the UAE with considerably more than sunshine on his mind.
