A ‘rusty’ Rory McIlroy found his golf ball in a most percular position – in seated woman’s lap – on the day one of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
McIlroy’s tee-shot was well left at the par-3 13th hole but unbeknown to him at the time, his ball had landed where it did.
Spectators gathered around the woman advising her not to move, and she did so as not to disturb the ball.
McIlroy and his caddy arrived, and with McIlroy quickly seeing the humourous side of the incident, and given the woman clearly was in way injured by the golf ball in this in contrast to his opening tee shot that hit a woman in going OOB at the 2019 Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
PLAY IT WHERE IS LIES …..
Rusty Rory @McIlroyRory 😂 he was going to play the ball where it lay – in the lap of a woman spectator
Hilarious incident day one, season-ending @dpwtc @Jumeirah 😊👏
Read: https://t.co/VWOsHhJf8z
✅ @TOURMISS https://t.co/4oLCMdTQ8X
— Golf & Science News (@TOURMISS) November 16, 2023
No, the exact opposite in Dubai as the woman’s mood was so relaxed that a smiling McIlroy pretended he was going to play a shot off the woman’s lap and went as far to almost rest his club on her lap.
He then said: “Okay, we better grab a referee”.
A DP World Tour rules official then arrived to even further amuse the crowd, using the same line of McIlroy’s that he should play the ball where it lies before correctly advising that under Rule 11.1, the now five-time DP World Tour No. 1 was entitled to collect the ball and take a free drop no closer to the hole.
