Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler strolled down the 16th hole at the National Course on Thursday, one with a putter slung over his shoulder, the other smiling broadly as he presumably shared a titbit or tale from the recent holidays.
The pair, the marquee names in this week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, had spent most of the time between shots shooting the breeze anyway, seemingly oblivious to the fact the tournament marked the beginning to what both hope will be another successful year.
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Not that it affected their performance. Although McIlroy struggled for much of the front nine, the world No 1 rallied from the third – his 12th – to post an opening 5-under-par 67, leaving him level with Fowler.
Close friends as well as professional rivals, the pair really are inseparable.
“We live quite near to one another in Florida, so we’re always hanging around and seeing each other,” McIlroy said.
“We were just chatting about the schedule for this year, a little about cars, about everything really.”
Continuing the automobile theme, McIlroy was grateful to finally be caught in Fowler’s slipstream, which eventually helped him shift through the gears, too.
The Northern Irishman appeared frustrated through the opening exchanges and stood on the 12th tee at even par. Fowler was three shots better off.
Making his UAE debut, the American was showing McIlroy, practically a veteran here with three runner-up finishes, the best way forward.
McIlroy responded with five birdies in the next six holes as Fowler continued to blaze a trail.
Already thick as thieves, he suddenly ascended to best-mate territory.
“It was definitely helpful, I needed something like that,” McIlroy said. “I felt I just needed to hang onto his coat tails a little bit. It was nice to see him playing well; it was a good bit of inspiration for me.”
Inspired would describe Fowler’s Abu Dhabi introduction. The world No 10 played second fiddle to McIlroy for much of last season, running him close at the British Open and the US PGA Championship, and there was also a hefty defeat in singles at the Ryder Cup.
The new season, though, has brought fresh optimism – besides, riding shotgun with McIlroy is not necessarily all that bad.
“I can’t get rid of him, that’s the hard part,” Fowler said with a smile. “I keep getting paired with him on the weekend, which is obviously a good thing. He’s the best player in the world, so if I’m hanging around him a little bit, I’m doing the right things.”
Fowler did plenty right during his first round.
Having found the opening stretch a little “shaky”, he soon gained firmer footing to fire six birdies in 11 holes. A closing bogey irked a tad, but not enough to dampen his mood.
All things considered, it had been a promising inauguration.
“A lot comes from the round today to build some confidence moving forward,” he said. “Really just making my own memories here. We’ve made some good ones; there’s not a whole lot of bad things to look back on. I’m excited for the week.”
Likewise, his playing partner. McIlroy’s last event was November’s DP World Tour Championship in Dubai – the European Tour’s season finale – where he came off a four-week break and nearly snaffled yet another title.
A similar hiatus proved equally negligible this time around, although McIlroy conceded improvement off the tee is required if he is to begin the season in the best possible fashion.
“The result was good – 67 was pleasing,” he said. “How I got there in the end not quite so much. I didn’t drive the ball particularly well, and around this course with the rough the way it is, I know I’m going to have to do a better job of that over the weekend.
“A 67, only one bogey: it’s not a bad way to start the year.”
jmcauley@thenational.ae
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