Jon Rahm is absolutely on fire, leading the Abu Dhabi Championship outright heading into the final day after a scorching six-under-par 66. The 31-year-old Spaniard is looking dominant, setting himself up perfectly for the championship title.
Rahm’s Blistering Back Nine
Rahm didn’t just play well, he turned up the heat big time on the back nine. After what sounds like a bit of a slow start, he went five-under through nine holes, even dropping an eagle between a pair of birdies on holes 10, 11, and 12 at Yas Links. That kind of run shows he’s locked in and ready to close this thing out. He finished day three a shot ahead of Englishman Tyrell Hatton and Italian Francesco Laporta, who are both sitting on 17-under after solid rounds of 67. Rahm is in prime position, for sure.
McIlroy’s Heartbreak on the 10th
While Rahm was tearing it up, Rory McIlroy had a brilliant third round himself, going five-under and keeping himself right in the hunt. He even sank eight birdies on day three. But here’s the kicker, the one shot he’s probably replaying in his head: a double-bogey on the 10th. Man, that stings. That double-bogey is the *only* thing that stopped him from being level with Rahm heading into the final round. Talk about a gut punch, right?
McIlroy didn’t mince words after his round, saying, “I played some really good golf out there but I’m also a little rueful. I felt like I had some really good momentum coming off the back of the front nine. Just the bunker shot came out a lot faster than I anticipated, and then over the green and it was sort of dead from there.” He added, “I followed another poor shot with another mistake at the third and ended up making a mess and made double.” He fought back with birdies on the next four holes, calling it a “good bounce back.” He knows what he needs to do though: “If I can just limit the mistakes, there’s enough good golf. There’s enough birdies. There’s enough opportunities. I can play a clean round of golf tomorrow, I won’t be too far away.”
Adam Scott is holding his own in fifth place, with David Puig and Englishman Matthew Jordan a shot further back at 14-under. But really, the story is Rahm’s lead and McIlroy’s fight back from that brutal double-bogey. Can McIlroy find that “clean round” tomorrow and make up those two shots, or is this Jon Rahm’s tournament to lose? The final round is gonna be intense.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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