Rory McIlroy left fans stunned after driving the green on the 394-yard par-4 10th hole during the opening round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. The Northern Irishman’s massive shot went viral after NUCLR Golf shared the clip on X, drawing a mix of disbelief and admiration from fans.
Rory McIlroy, known for his driving power, averages 320.3 yards off the tee this season and ranks third in strokes gained off the tee (+0.89). Still, this particular drive stood out, with fans joking that his distance seemed unreal.
One fan wrote:
“Rory must be tested for PEDs”
Another added:
“That’s ridiculous!! ”
A third commented:
“Drug test his balls!”
Meanwhile, another fan joked:
“We don’t care where he finishes in the tournament, just where he finishes in strokes-gained-driving with the new big stick ”
Rory McIlroy debuted his new TaylorMade Qi4D driver in Abu Dhabi this week which many believe is behind the explosive shot. Not everyone was convinced though, as one fan quipped:
“He’s still gonna lose lol”
A screenshot of Fan reactions on NUCLR Golf’s post (via X)
Rory McIlroy shot a 4-under 68 in the opening round making five birdies and one bogey. He started with a par on the first hole, then birdied the 2nd and 3rd to move to 2 under. He dropped a shot at the 5th but he recovered with a birdie on the 7th to finish the front nine in 34, two under.
On the back nine he birdied the 10th and 11th and parred his remaining holes to close out the round. Rory McIlroy currently sits tied for 27th heading into the next round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
When will Rory McIlroy tee up in the second round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship?
Rory McIlroy will begin his second round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship from the 1st tee at 11:50 a.m. (local time). He will play in the final group alongside Tyrrell Hatton and Marco Penge. Friday’s second round will feature 24 groups of three players each, with the first tee time scheduled for 7:17 a.m. (local time).
Here’s the complete list of tee times and groupings for Round 2 of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship:
07:17 AM – Ryggs Johnston, Jeong Weon Ko, and Joe Dean07:28 AM – Andrea Pavan, Ben Schmidt, and Manuel Elvira07:39 AM – Ryan Gerard, Joel Girrbach, and Alex Fitzpatrick07:50 AM – Matthew Jordan, Dylan Naidoo, and Francesco Laporta08:01 AM – Ludvig Åberg, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Adrien Saddier08:12 AM – Nacho Elvira, Connor Syme, and Marcel Schneider08:28 AM – Oliver Lindell, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, and Johannes Veerman08:39 AM – Michael Kim, Richard Mansell, and Marcus Armitage08:50 AM – Jacques Kruyswijk, Shaun Norris, and Joost Luiten09:01 AM – Patrick Reed, Daniel Brown, and Thriston Lawrence09:12 AM – Tom McKibbin, Keita Nakajima, and Martin Couvra09:23 AM – Robert MacIntyre, Alex Noren, and Kristoffer Reitan09:44 AM – Richard Sterne, Rafa Cabrera Bello, and Mikael Lindberg09:55 AM – Romain Langasque, Junghwan Lee, and Ugo Coussaud10:06 AM – Aaron Rai, Darius Van Driel, and Alejandro Del Rey10:17 AM – Jacob Skov Olesen, Brandon Robinson Thompson, and Todd Clements10:28 AM – Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, and Rasmus Højgaard10:39 AM – Ewen Ferguson, Jorge Campillo, and Grant Forrest10:55 AM – Calum Hill, Kazuma Kobori, and Nicolai Højgaard11:06 AM – Andy Sullivan, Eugenio Chacarra, and Nicolai Von Dellingshausen11:17 AM – Elvis Smylie, Jayden Schaper, and Angel Ayora11:28 AM – Jordan Smith, Joakim Lagergren, and Daniel Hillier11:39 AM – Laurie Canter, John Parry, and Li Haotong11:50 AM – Tyrrell Hatton, Marco Penge, and Rory McIlroy
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Edited by Sonali Verma