McIlroy Looking For 'control' As Golf Year Tees Off In Abu Dhabi

McIlroy looking for 'control' as golf year tees off in Abu Dhabi

The start of a new golf year sees Rory McIlroy picking up his annual habit of making lists as he heads to Abu Dhabi but, unlike previous seasons, the Northern Irishman is not specifying potential tournament victories

Abu Dhabi, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Jan, 2022 ) :The start of a new golf year sees Rory McIlroy picking up his annual habit of making lists as he heads to Abu Dhabi but, unlike previous seasons, the Northern Irishman is not specifying potential tournament victories.

Instead McIlroy says he wants to be "more of a measured and a controlled golfer" as he begins the quest for a first major since 2014.

The former world number one, now ranked eighth, headlines a quality field at the Abu Dhabi Championship, which has moved to a new venue in Yas Links Abu Dhabi for the first time in 16 years.

McIlroy is not the highest ranked player in the field -- that honour belongs to the reigning European number one and world number two Collin Morikawa of the US.

Norway's world number seven Viktor Hovland is also in the field while Englishman Tyrrell Hatton returns to defend the title he won last year when it was played at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club.

McIlroy, though, with four majors to his name, is still the top draw.

The 32-year-old had a remarkable record at the old venue -- apart from one missed cut in 2013, his only finish outside the top five is a tied-11th place in his maiden appearance in 2008.

So a new venue will present a new challenge. The rhythm and the routine, however, remain the same.

Since turning professional, McIlroy has made a habit of starting his season in Abu Dhabi and some years ago he famously revealed how he liked jotting down his goals for the year on his boarding pass while travelling from Ireland to Dubai.

Travelling these days by private jet from his residence in Florida he no longer has a boarding pass -- but he still makes his list.