IF YOU were looking forward to watching the world’s top two Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods in the final two rounds of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship this weekend, then forget it.
Both have already crashed out, Woods all because of a two-shot penalty imposed after he finished.
In a miserable start to his season, world number one McIlroy slumped to back-to-back 75s in his first tournament since signing a mega-million equipment deal with Nike. He ended up only joint 98th in a field of 126.
The 23-year-old even abandoned one of their putters to go back to an old faithful for the second round, but the result was the same.
That would have been a big enough story in itself, but then came the drama concerning Woods.
Just about everybody watching thought he had made it through to the closing 36 holes with a stroke to spare on over par, nine behind halfway leader Justin Rose.
Before signing his card, however, the two extra shots were added by European Tour chief referee Andy McFee over an incident at the fifth hole.
It dropped him from joint 49th into a tie for 71st, with only the leading 65 and ties surviving.
“Andy feels the way he feels about it, then I broke the rules,” said a clearly unhappy Woods, who now heads back to America for next week’s event at Torrey Pines near San Diego.
The 14-major champion has never before in his professional career missed the cut in a non-PGA Tour event.
Playing with McIlroy and Martin Kaymer, Woods had called the German over to inspect his lie in among the ice plants right of the fifth fairway.
“I thought my ball was embedded and he (Kaymer) agreed. Evidently it wasn’t,” Woods added.
Two reporters spoke to a different referee out on the course and McFee was then alerted.
“I went and had a look,” the experienced official said. “The area has loose, creeping vegetation, but it’s pure sand underneath and it didn’t look likely that the embedded-ball relief applied to Tiger’s situation.”
Woods, in other words, could have taken a penalty drop for an unplayable lie and would have made the cut as a result but he thought he was entitled to a free drop and that was his and Kaymer’s mistake.
Richie Ramsay was the Scot in form as he followed up his first-round 73 with a soaring 68 to lie five off the lead.
Fifer Peter Whiteford also made the cut after a second-round 70, along with Paul Lawrie and Craig Lee.
Scott Jamieson didn’t make it, along with fellow Scots Stephen Gallacher and Colin Montgomerie, new Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley and Darren Clarke.