Dubai: Edoardo Molinari is looking forward to teeing off early on Friday after shooting 65 in the first round of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic on Thursday afternoon.
His opening round was good enough to put him second in the leaderboard, two strokes behind overnight leader Rory McIlroy. However, the Italian felt those — like McIlroy — who had teed off in the morning had an advantage over the afternoon flights, with the greens drying out and the ball running faster as the day wore on.
This was evident in Molinari’s round, having started off with five birdies and a bogey, before an eagle and a birdie on his return.
“I think in the afternoon the greens were really firm,” he said. “I played a couple of practice rounds in the morning and in the afternoon it’s definitely more difficult, especially the back nine was quite tricky.
“Tomorrow [Friday] I’ll be able to play in the morning with softer greens and I think that’s going to be a big help, because surely the greens will be firmer and firmer as the week goes by. And I’m glad I’m playing in the morning tomorrow.”
Of his round, he said: “I’ve been hitting the ball very well lately, especially off the tee. The only blemish on the card was 18 today. I was between a three wood and I actually didn’t commit to the shot. But, apart from that, I think I hit every fairway all day and it was going like 320 [yards] every hole.”
