McIlroy has spring back in his step ahead of highlight event

Dubai: Rory McIlroy says he’s got the spring back in his step after returning from injury to finish tied for third in Abu Dhabi last week, ahead of this weekend’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic at Emirates Golf Club.

The Northern Irishman, who wrote off the tail end of 2017 in order to properly recover from a rib injury that had plagued him throughout the year, came back to post 18 under par, four strokes off eventual winner Tommy Fleetwood in the UAE capital.

He now comes into Dubai — where he made his first cut (2007), won his first event (2009) and is a two-time winner having won again in 2015 — full of confidence.

“I’ve no complaints about last week,” he said. “If someone had said at the start of the week I’d shoot 18-under on my first week back, I’d have thought, on a difficult course, it would be enough to win.

“I did exceed expectations and I guess it has changed the way I view this week. I know my game is in a good enough shape to contend and try to win.

“I feel like I’ve got a bit of a spring back in my step because of what happened last week and I’m very confident in myself.

“It’s a golf course I know how to get around and I know how to shoot good scores on, so I’m looking forward to it.

“I missed it last year,” he said, alluding to the initial rib injury early in 2017 that later affected his back and resulted in him having to sit out the rest of the season from October onwards. “I missed having the chance to win and compete.

Major boost

“It’s always one of the highlights of the year to come and play here with the memories I have. So I’m looking forward to getting back out there on Thursday and giving myself another chance to win.”

Asked if this resurgent confidence would extend into the first Major of the year, the Masters in April, which is the only title he’s missing from his collection, he replied: “I’ve got seven events from now until the Masters, so I’m sort of taking it week by week at this point.

“There’s no reason to think that my body won’t hold up to tournament golf all this year, but I’m just making sure that everything’s right.

“Right now it’s about getting myself in a nice bit of form and playing well, so I’m not really thinking about that [the Masters] right now.

“Come March, April time, I’ll turn my attention to that and start to focus on shots I need or clubs I might need in my bag, but right now my focus is on the Dubai Desert Classic and trying to win here for the third time.”