McIlroy keen to avoid "big miss"

Séamus Power might be the big hit in Irish golf right now, but Rory McIlroy is more concerned about his "big miss" as he bids to start the season with a win for the first time.

The Holywood star (32) tees it up with Lee Westwood and Viktor Hovland in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship with a clear plan of attack.

He's set himself several statistical goals rather than jotting down a wish-list of big-ticket items.

Dissecting golf courses a la Tiger Woods is at the top of the menu, which means prioritising accuracy over power and improving his irons.

"Trying to eliminate the big miss off the tee, those destructive shots where you make doubles from," the world No. 8 said of one of his big goals.

"If I do drive the ball well, I give myself so many opportunities… There's not much I need to work on, but there's a couple of key aspects, and I think if I can get them down early in the year, I could be in for a good season."

Despite being ranked 26th for total driving (length and accuracy) last year, the four-time major winner gave up 2.5 strokes per tournament to world No 1 Jon Rahm - a no-no, if you ask world No. 49 Power.

"If you can't drive it and drive it well, you are in so much trouble on tour now because all these 22-23 years olds are hitting it with 175 mph ball speed with very little movement," Power said last year, adding that more time spent on driving means less time for wedges.

McIlroy, who is joined at Yas Links by Shane Lowry, Pádraig Harrington and Jonathan Caldwell, knows who to emulate when it comes to tactics.

"I'll certainly pick-and-choose my spots where I can take advantage of the driver and hit it," said McIlroy, who ranked second for distance but 145th for accuracy last year.

"But the best player of the last 30 years, Tiger, he picked and chose where he hit driver, and he played a very, very controlled game. It didn't work out too badly for him."

Lowry is straighter than McIlroy and upbeat about 2022 if anxious after a two-month break.

While he hasn't won since he claimed the Abu Dhabi title and The Open in 2019, he's confident, if rusty.

"I really feel like I'm coming to an age now where I'm hopefully coming to the prime of my career, and I can do some really good things in this game," Lowry said.

Lowry and McIlroy had encouraging words for Power, who tees it up in the American Express at La Quinta in California, looking to continue his hot form.

"What he's done and the perseverance he showed over the last 10 or 15 years is incredible," Lowry said. "He's getting the rewards now and I'm delighted for him."

"He's done it the hard way," added McIlroy, who recalled playing the Munster Under 15s with Power at Gold Coast. "I've known Seamus for going on 20 years at this point. So I'm happy for him, happy that he's playing so well and it will be great to see him play in some of those bigger events this year." 

After finishing 21st and 11th in his first two visits to La Quinta, Power is thrilled to be back.

"This is a week I really love," he said. "The grass is as green as it is at home; it's just unbelievable. I love putting there."

The LPGA Tour returns without Leona Maguire, who starts next week having failed to qualify for the winners-only Tournament of Champions,

It's also the season opener for Darren Clarke, who defends the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai.

"I want to keep that winning habit," said Clarke, who is seeking his fourth Champions Tour win in 13 months. "There's nothing like it."