Fleetwood Staring At An Early Birthday Dubai Invitational Victory Toast.

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Tommy Fleetwood is set to celebrate his 33rd birthday five days early with a hopeful victory in the inaugural hosting of the Dubai Invitational.

Fleetwood took full advantage of golf’s traditional ‘Moving Day’ in posting a brilliant bogey-free eight-under 63 and how head to the final day’s play one clear of his rivals at 15-under on the host Dubai Golf & Creek Club course in Dubai.

Rory McIlroy struggled to be even par through 10 holes before finally getting his round into forward gears with a hat-trick of birdies from the 11th, eventually signing for a four-under 67 at a 14-under tally.


Fleetwood last tasted success at the 2022 Nedbank Challenge but it is another South African generated stat that he savoured in walking from the Dubai course Saturday as it’s a first time on the DP World Tour since he’s led after 54-holes exactly a decade ago in contesting the 2014 Volvo Champions in Durban, South Africa.

Fleetwood went into the final day on the Durban Country Club course one clear of his rivals but struggled in round four to lose the title by two shots to local hero Louis Oosthuizen.

And Fleetwood was reminded of his South African 54-hole lead straight after today’s Dubai round.

“Is it really?”, he said. “Yeah, it was nice. It’s a strange stat. Yeah, I felt I played very well, got off to the perfect start and got momentum early on, which I didn’t have yesterday.

“There was that little patch through the middle of the back nine, really, where you just start seeing putts going in, it’s funny, really, when you get a day like that and you’re just looking at them and you just feel like you can come close.

“So, yeah, nice day to be out on the course”,

The World No. 15 arrived into Dubai after a near 8,700 mile journey from the Hawaiian Islands where he had finished T41st in the PGA Tour season-opening The Sentry.

He posted a first round 66 but struggled somewhat with his putting on day two, recording a two-under 69 but said he worked on his putting post the round and was much happier at the completion of round three.

“I practiced on putting when I came in this morning”, he said.

“I mean, I putted well for like the last six or seven holes yesterday. I didn’t putt that bad, I just didn’t — like I said yesterday, I didn’t get the ball in the hole, which is the whole idea of putting. So, in essence, it wasn’t great.

And today I hit a couple of really nice putts early on. Was rolling the ball well. Hit the greens well.

“You know, today they went my way. Yeah, just a bit of confidence when you start holing some and just get in that rhythm and that flow”.

And let’s not forget Fleetwood has won twive before in the UAE at the last occasion being victory in the 2018 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and two days after turning 28.

 



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