Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship Tee times: McIlroy grouped with closest rivals for opening rounds

Rory McIlroy is closing in on a sixth Race to Dubai title.

Race to Dubai leader Rory McIlroy will tee off with Thriston Lawrence and Rasmus Hojgaard for the first and second rounds of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

Despite only playing 10 DP World Tour-sanctioned events in 2024, Rory McIlroy is in pole position to claim a sixth Race to Dubai title. The Northern Irishman has a healthy 1,572.39 and 1,920.28 point lead over nearest challengers Thriston Lawrence and Rasmus Hojgaard who have played 24 and 21 tournaments respectively.

The leading trio have all been grouped for the opening two rounds of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship where the top 70 players in the standings look to secure themselves a place in next week’s season finale – the DP World Tour Championship – where the Race to Dubai champion will be crowned.

A superior performance by World No.3 McIlroy over his rivals in Abu Dhabi, however, may well seal the destiny of the Harry Vardon Trophy before a ball is even struck on the Jumeirah Golf Estates Earth Course. And in doing so, McIlroy would draw level with Seve Ballesteros on six R2D titles with only Colin Montgomerie on eight, to chase down.

“I pride myself – I’m a European player – I would like to go down as the most successful European of all time, said McIlroy on Wednesday. “Obviously Race to Dubai wins would count to that but also Major Championships and hopefully I’ve got a few more Ryder Cups ahead of me as well.”

Elsewhere in the field, fifth-placed in the standings, Tommy Fleetwood will begin his campaign for a third Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship alongside Robert MacIntyre and Shane Lowry. Their Ryder Cup stablemate Tyrrell Hatton is one of three LIV players in the field, teeing it up with Adam Scott and a resurgent Matteo Manassero in another notable group. Australian Min Woo Lee will play his first two rounds in the company of British Masters champion Niklas Norgaard and 2007 R2D winner Justin Rose.

The Abu Dhabi field will compete for a share of the $9 million purse and 2,000 R2D points. Here are the tee times in full for the opening two rounds at the Yas Links…

Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship: Tee Times

Round 1

Round 2

About the author

Ross Tugwood – Senior Digital Writer

Ross Tugwood is a Senior Digital Writer for todays-golfer.com, specializing in data, analytics, science, and innovation.

Ross is passionate about optimizing sports performance and has a decade of experience working with professional athletes and coaches for British Athletics, the UK Sports Institute, and Team GB.

He is an NCTJ-accredited journalist with post-graduate degrees in Performance Analysis and Sports Journalism, enabling him to critically analyze and review the latest golf equipment and technology to help you make better-informed buying decisions.