Dubai: Rory McIlroy went away feeling “things could have been different” after failing to defend his Omega Dubai Desert Classic title on Sunday.
The World No.2 finished four strokes off the lead at 15-under par, tied for sixth in the leaderboard after rounds of 68, 72, 68 and 65.
“It’s sort of a week of what could have been,” said the Northern Irishman. “There was a lot of really good golf in there. I played a lot of great shots and made a lot of birdies, but just made a few too many mistakes, as well.
“I’ll rue the two front nines that I played on Friday and Saturday. I played the combined front nine five-over par there and if I had not done that things could have been different.”
McIlroy, who is now headed for the US in preparation for the Masters in April, added: “It’s been nice to shake the rust off these last couple of weeks. It’s good because it gives me a good understanding of what I need to do going into the next few weeks.
“It’s been a helpful exercise in that way, and it would have been better to come away with a win. But I still feel like there’s a lot of work to do going into the next few weeks.
“I’m struggling with the driver a little bit, so I just want to try and work on that. My wedge play, short game; even if I’m not hitting it as well as I’d like, those things are sort of saving me a little bit.
“So I’m working on my driving and if everything else can stay where it is, I feel like I should get a good run in the States.”
