Lowry and McIlroy lurking as Elvira takes two-shot lead at Dubai Invitational
Shane Lowry overcame a slow start and made three birdies in his last 12 holes to grind out a one-under 70 and keep his victory hopes alive in the Dubai Invitational.
While Rory McIlroy is just a shot further back after a 68, Lowry is bidding for his first individual win for more than three years, and he was pleased to break par and go into the final round tied for second with Dylan Frittelli (666) and Marcus Armitage (68), just two strokes behind Nacho Elvira.
The Spaniard fired a 68 to lead on eight-under par, but Lowry was upbeat about his chances of winning for the first time as an individual since the 2022 BMW PGA Championship.
“Good,” Lowry said of a day that began with bogeys at the third and fifth. “It was a grind today.
“Got off to a bad start. Didn't really have it early on. A couple of really, really bad mistakes, and I just hung in there well, and to be honest, I was grinding for our team more than anything.”
He added, “Obviously, when it comes to tomorrow, I want to try and win the individual event, but I was grinding for our team.
“I wanted to hole the putt at the end. I didn't know what way the tie would have left us. I'm happy with my day's work. Could have been a little bit better.”
Dunne’s team finished third in the team event, a shot behind winner Geoff Yang and runner-up Greg Mondre, but Lowry is very much alive in his bid to start the season with a victory at Dubai Creek Resort.
After his early mistakes, he made a great birdie at the seventh, running up his 189-yard approach from the rough to three-and-a-half feet.
He then birdied the ninth with a stunning 140-yard recovery from sand to four feet, and did well to get up and down from 83 yards for his par-five at the 13th after putting his second in the water.
He went on to make a great par save from around 11 feet at the short 16th, then made a seven-footer at the 17th for birdie to close to get within two shots of Elvira, who played his last 10 holes in four under for his 68.
Lowry hit a great shot to10 feet at the 18th from an awkward, uneven lie in the right rough, but while it lipped out for his birdie, he was upbeat about his game and ending his long wait for an individual win.
“Yeah, it was pretty good because when I got over par early, it's tricky out there,” he said. “Obviously, there are a few good scores, but there are a lot of average and bad scores out there.
“I just felt like I needed to stay patient and keep doing what I was doing and my chances will come. I was happy I holed a great par putt on 16, and the birdie on 17 was nice, and I was robbed on the last, but what can you do?”
As for thoughts of winning, he added, “It's the reason I get up in the morning. Try my best. Working as hard as I can, and yeah, hopefully it will come soon.”
McIlroy is also well in the mix after bouncing back from Friday’s 74 with a 68 to lurk just three shots off the lead on eight-under.
The Holywood star followed a birdie at the first with a bogey six at the fourth but recovered well and played the back nine in three under for his 68.
“Yeah, a little bit better than yesterday,” McIlroy said. “Kept the ball dry instead of the four water balls I had. It was a tricky enough day.
“The wind was up a little bit again and maybe not quite as much as yesterday but got off to a bit of a slow start but stayed patient and hung in there. Was rewarded with three birdies on the back nine.”
McIlroy has had a win, six seconds and 15 top-five finishes in his first start of the year, and he’s looking forward to trying to sneak a win.
“I was looking at this week as honestly a bit of a practice week going into the Desert Classic next week, just to shake off a little bit of the rust,” he said.
“But it's great to go into a final round tomorrow in contention and have a chance to win a tournament.
“I've learned a lot about my game over the last three days, but I think any time that you're at the business end of proceedings on the final day, you learn a lot about your game.
“Tomorrow will be a good day for me. To know what to maybe focus on going into the Desert Classic next week, as well.”
His 68 was a score that matched Elvira (38), who is bidding for his third DP World Tour win, and not overawed about the prospect of having to fight off the likes of Ryder Cup stars Lowry and McIlroy in the final round.
“Some big guys coming up,” he said. “What can I say? They are great players. I played with Shane today.
“He's obviously a level above, like we all know. But I'm going to try to stick to my game and see where that puts me.
“If that puts me winning, great. If that puts me two behind, then let it be.”
Tom McKibbin shot 72 to share 42nd on six over while Pádraig Harrington’s 75 left him 49th in the 58-man field on nine over.
