New year, same results for Tommy Fleetwood.
The reigning Race to Dubai champ picked up where he left off in the opening round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, carding a bogey-free 66 during which the Englishman found all 18 greens in regulation. At 6 under, he shares the lead with Japan’s Hideto Tanihara and sits one shot clear of five other players.
“Very stress-free. Played really well from start to finish,” Fleetwood said. “Felt like I did what you need to do around this golf course, which is drive it well, hit your irons solid. You can’t really be too greedy a lot of the time, and then sort of my pace putting was really good. So basically just did what you need to do to get a good score around this golf course, and I got one.”
Full-field scores from the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship
Fleetwood shined in a marquee grouping that included world No. 1 Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy, as he birdied three holes on each nine. This is his first worldwide start since a T-3 finish at the Hero World Challenge.
It was at this event a year ago that Fleetwood sparked a career campaign, edging Johnson and Pablo Larrazabal for the win. He added another win at the French Open in the summer to go along with a pair of runner-up results and a T-4 finish at the U.S. Open, all of which helped him capture the European Tour’s season-long title.
Fleetwood’s sudden success in Abu Dhabi serves as a microcosm for his career resurgence. Prior to last year’s victory, he had missed the cut in four of his five other trips to this event.
Source: Internet
