DUBAI // It was comprehensive, clinical and looked laughably easy.
In fact, it was impossible to dispute any of those assertions, though Rory McIlroy warned that appearances can be somewhat deceiving.
Only a few weeks removed from a lengthy drought in which he fell from first to sixth in the world rankings, McIlroy strafed the field in the first round of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic with a 9-under 63 yesterday, reminding the world of how he got to No 1 in the first place.
McIlroy, who claimed a two-shot lead of Italy’s Edoardo Molinari, overpowered one of the longest-tenured tracks on the European Tour, cutting the corners of doglegs at Emirates Golf Club with a series of crushing tee shots, reducing a 7,344-yard course into a rip-it-and-chip-it venue.
With seven birdies and an eagle, it was an impressively clean, low-strain affair, and it looked close to effortless.
“I don’t think it’s ever easy,” McIlroy said. “It can feel easier than it has in the past, but you still have to work hard. I’ve worked really hard in the last couple of months to get to this point.
“OK, it may feel easy and these scores may look somewhat routine, but there’s a lot of hard work that goes on behind the scenes to actually be able to go out and shoot scores like this.”
That might be irrefutable fact with a sprinkle of semantics, but the fact remains that McIlroy played so well yesterday that the notion of making a bogey seemed practically ludicrous.
Playing partner and defending champion Stephen Gallacher, who shot 66 and is tied for third, was impressed. “He played so good,” Gallacher acknowledged, “he made 9 under look easy.”
Ah, that four-letter word again.
With his parents and girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki in the gallery, McIlroy posted his lowest career round at the Majlis Course, where he won his first European Tour title five years ago, and one of his most impressive scores in months.
McIlroy, encamped in the UAE for the past month, certainly has found a home at Emirates, where he twice played in the Desert Classic as an amateur.
Outside of Scotland’s St Andrews, McIlroy could not name another tournament course where he felt similarly at ease.
“I don’t know, you just get certain golf courses, you just see the shots,” he said.
“You read the greens well. Just have a certain feeling.”
It helps that the core of his game, the driver, has returned after a nine-month absence in 2013, when McIlroy dropped from first to sixth in the world ranking.
Even on holes requiring huge carries to clear certain hazards, McIlroy was taking on the challenge and executing without a hiccup.
“The ones that are 300-yard carries or whatever, you can take on a little bit more than some of the other guys,” McIlroy said.
Make that nearly all of the other guys. For a prototype power player like McIlroy, it all starts with the driver, and he finally found one to his liking last fall and has been gradually climbing the confidence ladder since.
“When a guy that talented gets his game back, he will dominate,” said Fred Couples, the 1995 Dubai champion.
“It is just a matter of for how long and if you can just keep away from people talking about it, you’ll do fine.”
The view of the Northern Irishman’s day from inside the ropes was the same.
McIlroy hit 12 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens, though the misses were by easily tolerable margins. For instance, he even rammed in a 25-foot birdie putt from the fringe on his 16th hole.
“He’s playing better,” Woods said after opening with a 68.
“A lot better.”
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The five pillars of Islam
Liz%20Truss
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Company%20profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
RACE CARD
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,200m
6pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-1 (PA) Listed Dh230,000 1,600m
6.30pm: HH The President’s Cup (PA) Group 1 Dh2.5million 2,200m
7pm: HH The President’s Cup (TB) Listed Dh380,000 1,400m
7.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Handicap Dh70,000 1,200m.
Company%20Profile
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Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
RESULTS
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APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
THE%20SWIMMERS
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ICC T20 Team of 2021
Jos Buttler, Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam, Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, David Miller, Tabraiz Shamsi, Josh Hazlewood, Wanindu Hasaranga, Mustafizur Rahman, Shaheen Afridi
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
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ASHES FIXTURES
1st Test: Brisbane, Nov 23-27
2nd Test: Adelaide, Dec 2-6
3rd Test: Perth, Dec 14-18
4th Test: Melbourne, Dec 26-30
5th Test: Sydney, Jan 4-8
The biog
Fast facts on Neil Armstrong’s personal life:
- Armstrong was born on August 5, 1930, in Wapakoneta, Ohio
- He earned his private pilot’s license when he was 16 – he could fly before he could drive
- There was tragedy in his married life: Neil and Janet Armstrong’s daughter Karen died at the age of two in 1962 after suffering a brain tumour. She was the couple’s only daughter. Their two sons, Rick and Mark, consulted on the film
- After Armstrong departed Nasa, he bought a farm in the town of Lebanon, Ohio, in 1971 – its airstrip allowed him to tap back into his love of flying
- In 1994, Janet divorced Neil after 38 years of marriage. Two years earlier, Neil met Carol Knight, who became his second wife in 1994
The%20Continental%3A%20From%20the%20World%20of%20John%20Wick%20
%3Cp%3ECreated%20by%3A%20Greg%20Coolidge%2C%20Shawn%20Simmons%2C%20Kirk%20Ward%3Cbr%3EStars%3A%20Mel%20Gibson%2C%20Colin%20Woodell%2C%20Mishel%20Prada%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
Directed by: Shaka King
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons
Four stars
MATCH INFO
What: India v Afghanistan, first Test
When: Starts Thursday
Where: M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengalaru
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Read more from Mina Al-Oraibi