Fleetwood And Lowry In Share Of Lead In Uae

Abu Dhabi Championship first information leaderboard

-8 A Saddier (Fra), R Sterne (SA), T Fleetwood (Eng), S Lowry (Ire), K Kobori (NZ); -7 I Elvira (Spa), M Kim (US), K Nakajima (Jpn), A Noren (Swe), N Hojgaard (Den), A Sullivan (Eng) N Von Dellingshausen (Ger)

Selected others: -6 A Fitzpatrick (Eng), R Mansell (Eng), M Armitage (Eng), A Rai (Eng), T Hatton (Eng); -5 M Fitzpatrick (Eng), C Hill (Sco), M Penge (Eng); -4 R McIlroy (NI)

Full leaderboard

Ryder Cup team-mates Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry are successful a stock of nan lead aft nan first information of nan Abu Dhabi Championship.

England's Fleetwood and Irishman Lowry, who helped Europe hit nan USA astatine Bethpage successful September, some carded an eight-under 64 astatine Yas Links.

Adrien Saddier, Richard Sterne and Kazuma Kobori complete nan 5 leaders aft time 1 of nan DP World Tour's penultimate tourney of nan twelvemonth - pinch a section of 70 whittled down to 50 for adjacent week's DP World Tour Championship finale.

Sterne made a flying commencement arsenic nan South African was 7 nether aft nan beforehand nine, earlier landing a 75-foot putt connected nan 18th to declare his 2nd eagle of nan time and return nan clubhouse lead.

However, it is England's Marco Penge has emerged arsenic nan closest challenger to leader Rory McIlroy successful nan Race to Dubai.

The 27-year-old played pinch McIlroy for nan first clip connected Thursday and is among 7 players who are 3 shots disconnected nan lead, pinch McIlroy a changeable further back.

Penge, who has claimed 3 Tour wins since starting nan twelvemonth pinch a three-month prohibition for breaching betting rules, had 3 bogeys arsenic he went information 5 under, while McIlroy parred his last 7 holes to decorativeness pinch 1 bogey successful his information of 68.