Rory McIlroy using new water bottle drill on practice range in Abu Dhabi
Rory McIlroy shows off an interesting water bottle drill while on the range at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on DP World Tour.
Golf fans have been reacting to Rory McIlroy's new water bottle drill on the practice range ahead of this week's Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links.
McIlroy, 35, can wrap up a sixth Harry Vardon trophy this week as he already holds a commanding lead of more than 1,500 points.
Should the World No.3 go on to win a sixth Race to Dubai title the DP World Tour, it will match the feat of late great Seve Ballesteros who did the same when it was known as the Order of Merit on the European Tour.
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McIlroy is making his first competitive start in a month since finishing a lacklustre T25 at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews.
That was a week that saw him not only play alongside his father Gerry at the Home of Golf, but also PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and Saudi PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, as talks continue between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to unify the professional game once again.
The DP World Tour could not help but notice McIlroy was using a new practice drill at Yas Links ahead of this week's first DP World Tour Playoffs event.
Scroll below to check it out...
McIlroy was seen placing his water bottle just outside his right foot with a tiny gap by his golf bag to help improve his accuracy with the wedges.
A number of critics have recently questioned McIlroy's ability with the wedges, especially from inside of 150 yards this season.
At least compared to some of his biggest rivals, Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele.
That is evident when you take a closer look at some of McIlroy's statistics on the PGA Tour in 2024.
He ranks a lowly 122nd in greens in regulation (65.7%) and 54th in strokes gained pproach the green (0.260).
While you delve deeper into his wedge game, McIlroy ranks 117th in his proximity to the pin from approaches 125 to 150 yards (24 feet).
He also ranks 57th in proximity to the pin from approaches 50 to 125 yards (18 feet).
Here's a look at McIlroy's practice drill involving a water bottle:
Click on the thread above to see what fans are saying about McIlroy's new drill.
McIlroy has won three times in 2024, with two victories on the PGA Tour (Wells Fargo, Zurich Classic alongside Shane Lowry) and one on the DP World Tour (successful title defence at the Dubai Desert Classic).
But it was another barren spell in the majors with his biggest heartache coming at the US Open where he missed two short putts on the closing holes to hand the title to Bryson DeChambeau for a second time in his career.
McIlroy will now be attempting to finish off his season in style with strong performances in Abu Dhabi this week and Dubai next week for the season-ending DP World Tour Championship where he is more than likely to lift the Race to Dubai for a sixth time in his career.
The Ulsterman will then team up with Scottie Scheffler as the PGA Tour duo clash against LIV Golf's DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka in The Showdown in Las Vegas on 17 December.
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