Rory McIlroy excited for 20th anniversary Desert Classic showdown

Dubai: Rory McIlroy says the Desert Classic “holds so many great memories” as he prepares to mark the 20th anniversary of his debut at the tournament in 2006.

Since competing in the competition for the first time as a fresh faced 16-year-old, it’s fair to say McIlroy has went on to have an illustrious career.

As the Irishman faced the press ahead of what will be his 17^th time competing at the Majlis course at the Emirates Golf Club, he spoke with enthusiasm and reflected on his time in Dubai.

“I love Dubai,” said McIlroy. “It holds so many great memories for me, first of which was coming here as a 16-year-old, and playing in the Desert Classic for the first time as an amateur, I played twice as an amateur.”

“In 2007, I made the cut, and that got me to world No. 1 in the amateur rankings, and two years later, I won my first professional event here.”

“So it's a lot of great memories. I've met a lot of great people along the way. Honestly, I've always felt like it was a perfect place to start the year.”

A lot has changed for golf in the last 20 years, particularly in the UAE, were the emergence of the sport has evolved from a niche pastime into a major sport and lifestyle activity.

Today the country has over 25 full golf courses across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah and other emirates.

The five-time Ryder Cup winner expressed his delight with the growth of the sport and what it means for the upcoming stars in golf.

“Golf has become such a big thing in this region,” he stated. “You just see the amount of kids that are out here watching the tournament year-in and year-out, and obviously the number of amazing tournaments that have come to Dubai.”

“Obviously we played at the Creek last week. We are here this week. We're in Abu Dhabi at the end of the year. We're at Jumeirah Golf Estates. So high-level golf comes to this region very often and it's amazing to see the growth of the game here.”

“I think junior golf probably wasn't as big in this part of the world 20 years ago as it is now, and that's amazing. I got a chance to meet the two junior Desert Classic Champions, and I think coming back to a place for so long and seeing the development of golf in this region has been amazing.”

It’s been 19 years since McIlroy turned professional at just 17-years-old, during that period he has competed in hundreds of DP World Tour competitions alone.

The now 34-year-old added that he believes it is important to avoid complacency, emphasising the need to compete in tournaments that continue to excite and challenge him.

“I think I need to show up at tournaments with enthusiasm every single time. So playing in the places that I want to play, playing the tournaments I want to play. Not feeling like I'm at a tournament because I'm obligated or have to be there but because I want to be there.”

“You just think about the amount of balls that I've hit and the amount of time I've spent on the range on my own. That starts to get tedious 20 years into a career.”

“So it's like trying to find the joy in that. What I really found joy in I feel like at home is playing golf.”