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Tommy Fleetwood Wins Dubai Invitational After a Brutal Sunday Collapse From Rory McIlroy

McIlroy three-putted from two feet en route to losing to his European Ryder Cup teammate.

Gabrielle Herzig

Tommy Fleetwood Wins Dubai Invitational After a Brutal Sunday Collapse From Rory McIlroy
Tommy Fleetwood Wins Dubai Invitational After a Brutal Sunday Collapse From Rory McIlroy /

With a birdie-birdie finish, Tommy Fleetwood clinched his 10th professional victory and seventh title on the DP World Tour at the Dubai Invitational after a late collapse from his European Ryder Cup teammate Rory McIlroy. 

Fleetwood entered Sunday’s final round with a one-shot lead but lost it on the par-3 16th hole after making a bogey, giving McIlroy a one stroke lead heading into the final hole. 

McIlroy could have had a much larger cushion had he not three-putted from two feet on the 14th. The blunder momentarily gave Fleetwood the solo lead, forcing McIlroy to bounce back with birdies on 15 and 17. 

Both players then birdied the penultimate hole, allowing No. 18 to decide the tournament. But the result was practically determined before the group even reached the final putting surface. McIlroy made another costly mistake: His tee shot sailed to the left, splashing into the water hazard and setting up a closing bogey.  

Meanwhile, Fleetwood maintained his composure beautifully. A par would have likely forced a playoff, but Fleetwood stepped things up a notch, taking advantage of his opponent’s late-round struggles. Fleetwood sunk a 16 foot birdie putt to shoot 4 under on Sunday and win the event with a 19-under tournament total. 

“It’s always very special when you play with one of your friends,” Fleetwood said after clinching the title. “Challenging yourself against those guys, like I said just before, Rory’s been a very, very supportive influence on me. I’ve watched him do amazing things down the stretch in golf tournaments, and today was my turn.”

Although disappointed with his late-round shakiness, McIlroy seemed to take positives away from the week. He finished tied for second place with South Africa’s Thriston Lawrence, who shot 7 under in the final round. 

“I think the first week back out, I think you’re going to expect some of those sloppy mistakes, and unfortunately for me, those mistakes came at the wrong time today,” he said. “But you know, I’ll reflect on it and learn from today, and there’s still a lot of good stuff in there. But just need to tidy up some of the edges, and if I do that, I feel good going into next week.”

“I’m really happy for Tommy,” he continued. “He’s played some incredible golf over the last year without actually getting a win. So for him to get the win here, it’s great for him and it will do his confidence and world of good, and hopefully he kicks on from it.” 

Next week, both Fleetwood and McIlroy will tee it up at the Dubai Desert Classic. McIlroy will look to defend his title and Fleetwood will aim to build on an already successful 2024 season. 

 

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Gabrielle Herzig
GABRIELLE HERZIG

Gabrielle Herzig is a Breaking and Trending News writer for Sports Illustrated Golf. Previously, she worked as a Golf Digest Contributing Editor, an NBC Sports Digital Editorial Intern, and a Production Runner for FOX Sports at the site of the 2018 U.S. Open. Gabrielle graduated as a Politics Major from Pomona College in Claremont, California, where she was a four-year member and senior-year captain of the Pomona-Pitzer women’s golf team. In her junior year, Gabrielle studied abroad in Scotland for three months, where she explored the Home of Golf by joining the Edinburgh University Golf Club.

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