Golf

Rory McIlroy kicks off his season in Dubai with Green Jacket in mind

World number two planning to play more tournaments in the lead up to the Masters

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland interacts with Tom McKibbin. Photograph: Oisin Keniry/Getty
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland interacts with Tom McKibbin. Photograph: Oisin Keniry/Getty
Philip Reid
Mon Jan 08 2024 - 20:22

The first steps of Rory McIlroy’s latest yearly quest to get a Green Jacket for his wardrobe get under way this week in Dubai as part of a newly configured schedule all aimed at peaking for the Masters at Augusta National in April.

McIlroy, the world number two, has opted to kickstart his season’s work in this week’s inaugural Dubai Invitational and the more familiar haunt of next week’s defence of the Dubai Desert Classic, before relocating to the United States for a competitive timeline right up to the Masters, the only one of golf’s Majors to have evaded him.

That annual attempt to complete the career Grand Slam has seen McIlroy adopt different approaches, but an analysis of how he traditionally hits form in the summer and autumn months had led to a decision to play more events than usual in the run-up to that opening Major of the season in Georgia.

McIlroy – a one-time resident of Dubai – returns to the emirate for this week’s limited field Dubai Invitational (60 players) at Dubai Creek before defending his DDC title at the Emirates before taking a week off and then starting his PGA Tour year’s work in the AT&T Pebble Beach pro-am, which is one of the new $20 million signature tournaments stateside.

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Although McIlroy hasn’t confirmed his itinerary beyond Pebble Beach, the prospective list includes those signature events that also include the Genesis Invitational (where Tiger Woods is expected to play). He may include the Phoenix Open the week beforehand if he decides on a three-week straight run, while the Arnold Palmer in March the week before The Players has also been given signature status.

McIlroy worked with his team – including coach Michael Bannon and caddie Harry Diamond – to reconfigure his scheduling for this year. Indeed, speaking on The Overlap recently, McIlroy acknowledged that his past calendar running up to the Masters had been “a bit stop-start” and explained: “I’ve got this trend of the last few years – May, June, July, August – where that stretch is my best, so if we can just get into April when the Masters happens, maybe play a bit more and being a bit sharper.”

This week’s Dubai Invitational – back at the Creek, which was the original venue for the Desert Classic – is a stress-free starting point on the season in a 60-player field with no cut.

The Dubai Invitational is a new event on the DP World Tour circuit and, while McIlroy is the top draw, the field also features world number 15 and fellow Ryder Cup winner Tommy Fleetwood, along with Nicolai Hojgaard and Francesco Molinari.

Tom McKibbin is also using Dubai as a starting point for his year’s work, after a brilliant rookie season on the DP World Tour which saw him secure a breakthrough win in the Porsche European Open. McKibbin, who turned 21 last month, has already played twice in Australia before Christmas on this season’s schedule.

The Belfast man made 21 of 31 cuts in a busy rookie season on the European Tour, with nine top-25s including that win, and is aiming to kick on this year with an eye on securing one of the PGA Tour cards available to the leading 10 players not already exempt on the DP World Tour:

“There is a good opportunity now with the DP World Tour to have 10 cards available for the PGA Tour at the end of the year, so to get one of those I have got to play a lot of good golf but it is definitely not impossible.”

McKibbin escaped to some warm weather in Florida following the Christmas period to get ready for his return to competition and hopes to hit the ground running in Dubai, with the Middle East region hosting five tournaments with Ras al Khaimah, Bahrain and Qatar following on from the two in the UAE.

Séamus Power, meanwhile, is the only Irish player in the field for this week’s Sony Open in Hawaii. The Waterford man – who hadn’t played since August due to a hip injury – returned to competition in the Sentry in Maui (finishing tied-50th) and is also in the field for next week’s American Express in California where Shane Lowry is set to make his seasonal start.

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Philip Reid

Philip Reid

Philip Reid is Golf Correspondent of The Irish Times