Rory McIlroy has made up ground after a difficult start to his 2025 DP World Tour season at the prestigious Hero Dubai Desert Classic. Reigning Race to Dubai champion McIlroy won the Rolex Series event at the Emirates Golf Club en route to his sixth Order of Merit victory last year. The Northern Irishman held off Adrian Meronk to win by one stroke and collect the $1.5million prize. However, McIlroy's hopes of a fifth Dubai Desert Classic title are looking less likely, with Tyrrell Hatton leading the way.
Dubai Desert Classic: Date and how to follow
This tournament started on Thursday, January 16, and will run until Sunday, January 19. Play will begin at 7:05am local time which is 3:05am UK time.
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It is being held at the Emirates Golf Club in the UAE - the course is a par 72 and will measure 7,428 yards. The event will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Golf with coverage set to begin at 6am each morning in the UK. talkSPORT and talkSPORT.com will also keep you up to date with all the latest.
Dubai Desert Classic: Field and tee times
Ryder Cup superstars McIlroy and Rahm are headlining the field at the Emirates Golf Club.
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Also teeing it up is Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre, Viktor Hovland, Min Woo Lee and Adam Scott. PGA Tour winner Akshay Bhatia is making his debut in the event. Several of Rahm’s fellow LIV stars have also been in action too including Patrick Reed, Hatton and Meronk again. The latest leaderboard can be found
here .
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Dubai Desert Classic: What has been said?
"I got off to a bit of a slow start again. I played much better on the back nine," said McIlroy ahead of the final round. "I hit the ball well. The conditions are tough. It's windy and hard to get the ball close to the flags. "I would have liked to have shot a few shots better but I'm happy with how I played."
