Patrick Reed relished an "epic battle" with Rory McIlroy and shrugged off another controversy by stating "I know who I am" after missing out on a Dubai Desert Classic victory.

Reed has been in the spotlight at Emirates Golf Club after the American threw a tee towards McIlroy, having been snubbed for a handshake following a dispute between the pair.

LIV Golf star Reed was the centre of attention again on Sunday when he took an unplayable penalty drop after his ball got lodged in a tree, with question marks raised over whether it was in fact his ball he had identified by using binoculars.

When the tournament finally came to an end on Monday as a result of poor weather last week, Reed carded a seven-under 65 to ramp up the pressure on McIlroy.

A birdie at the 18th for Reed drew him level with the Northern Irishman at the top of the leaderboard, but McIlroy sunk a putt from 15 feet for a gain of his own to finish on 19 under with a round of 68 and take the title.

McIlroy had put a stray tee shot just short of the water at the last hole, but got himself out of trouble to seal a third Dubai Desert Classic win that he said was all the sweeter given he denied Reed.

Reed said: "I knew what I had to do early. I went out there and I put the pressure on him. Being four back of a guy like Rory is not easy.

"I battled it out, but missed a great opportunity on 15. The only real bad shot I hit was the tee shot on 16 [which resulted in his only bogey of the day]. Ended up behind the tree."

On the subject of trees, Reed was unperturbed over questions being raised about his integrity on Sunday.

"I don't really look at media or social media whenever I'm playing a tournament," he said. "Normally it's always negative, so I try to stay away from it.

"I've heard about it, but really all I can say is that I looked through the binoculars, identified my golf ball and explained what my markings were to the rules official. He looked and he identified [the ball] exactly the same way I did."

He added: "The good thing is I know who I am. All I can do is focus on my golf and focus on me. Felt like I've done that this week. Felt like I played great.

"It always seems to come down to Rory and I. We love to put on a good show. Unfortunately, I was on the wrong end of this one. Hats off to him, he played some great golf, especially on the weekend.

"It would have been even better if both of us were in the same group. But whenever he and I are battling, we have fun and epic battles."

Rory McIlroy said his victory over Patrick Reed at the Dubai Desert Classic was "sweeter than it should be or needs to be".

World number one McIlroy clinched his third title at the event in a thrilling final round, making a fine birdie at the last hole on Monday to fend off rival Reed.

Prior to the tournament American and LIV Golf defector Reed labelled McIlroy an "immature little child" for blanking him at the practice range and was also alleged to have thrown a tee at the Northern Irishman.

McIlroy said Reed's lawyer served him with court papers on Christmas Eve, although Reed said he was not behind the subpoena, with the case concerned being one brought by American attorney Larry Klayman relating to divisions between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour.

Reed was involved in more controversy on Sunday when he took an unplayable penalty drop after his ball got lodged in a tree, with question marks raised over whether it was in fact his ball he had identified by using binoculars.

But McIlroy, considered by some as the PGA Tour's de facto spokesperson since LIV Golf's breakaway, came out on top in scintillating fashion.

"I think mentally today was probably one of the toughest rounds I've had to play, it would have been really easy to let emotions get in the way," he told DP World Tour media.

"I had to really concentrate on focusing on myself, forget who was up there on the leaderboard and I did that really, really well.

"I think I showed a lot of mental strength out there today and something to build on for the rest of the year.

"There's been a ton of positives this year, but also some things to learn from and improve on.

"I'm going to enjoy this, this is probably sweeter than it should be or needs to be but I feel like I've still got some stuff to work on.

"It's a great start to the year and a good foundation to work from."

McIlroy took a three-shot advantage into the final round, but victory could have slipped from his grasp when a tee shot held up close to the water on the 18th.

Yet the 33-year-old kept his cool to set up a 15-foot putt, which he sunk to avoid a play-off.

"Honestly I feel like I got lucky my ball didn't go in the water off the tee shot, it's such an awkward tee shot, driver's too much, three wood's not enough. I tried to hit an easy driver and it came off too hot," McIlroy said.

"I really only had one choice, to lay up and try to get up and down that way. I said yesterday with the two balls in the water on Sunday last year and yesterday, fool me once shame on me, fool me twice… I wasn't going to get fooled a third time."

Rory McIlroy birdied the last hole of a thrilling final round to hold off Patrick Reed and win the Dubai Desert Classic for a third time on Monday.

In a tournament that finished a day later than scheduled due to poor weather last Thursday and Friday, the world number one got himself out of a spot of bother on the 18th to start the year with a maiden Rolex Series victory

American Reed threw a tee in McIlroy's direction at Emirates Golf Club last week after being snubbed for a handshake following a dispute between the pair, but the Northern Irishman held his nerve to avoid throwing away his lead as the tension mounted during the last round.

LIV Golf star Reed was involved in more controversy on Sunday when he took an unplayable penalty drop after his ball got lodged in a tree, with question marks raised over whether it was in fact his ball he had identified by using binoculars.

McIlroy took a three-shot advantage into the final round, but Texan Reed carded a seven-under 65 and birdied the last hole to ramp up the pressure on the four-time major champion.

A tee shot that held up precariously close to the water left McIlroy with work to do at 18 and he had to wait for his second shot while Reed was coming close to an eagle three up in front of him before sinking a short birdie putt.

McIlroy laid up short of the water before showing his class to land his third shot 15 feet from the pin and duly avoided a play-off by draining a brilliant putt for the win.

A closing four-under 68 was enough for the 33-year-old to get the job done, finishing with back-to-back birdies to end the tournament on 19 under – beating Reed by one shot.

McIlroy had made his only bogey of the week at 15, but put that behind him to finish with a flourish following a steady start – adding to the Dubai Desert Classic victories he celebrated in 2009 and 2015.

Reed went out in 32 following three gains and maintained his momentum with an eagle-three at the 10th, then a further two birdies at 11 and 13.

He dropped a shot at 16 and a birdie at the last proved to be in vain as he fell just short.

Lucas Herbert finished strongly with a 66 to take third place, three adrift of McIlroy, with Callum Shinkwin fourth at 15 under and Julien Brun a further stroke back. Ian Poulter double-bogeyed the last and had to settle for joint-sixth along with Thomas Pieters following a closing two-under 70.

Rory McIlroy put himself firmly in the mix at the Dubai Desert Classic after a flourish that disguised the "rusty" golf he feared would put him way down the leaderboard.

The lucrative DP World Tour event was again hit by wet weather on Friday, after a six-hour delay on Thursday, and with McIlroy among many in the field yet to begin the second round, organisers decided it would be extended to finish on Monday rather than Sunday.

McIlroy got his work for the day done in the morning at Emirates Golf Club, polishing off an opening round he left in a promising place overnight, having reached two under through 15 holes and given himself a short-range putt at the next that he elected to leave for Friday.

The world number one made that putt, then holed out from 107 yards for eagle at the eighth hole, his 17th, and finished with another birdie to complete a six-under 66 for what was a share of the lead at the time.

McIlroy summed up his performance on Thursday as "honestly not very good", so he was thankful to shoot such a low score.

"I struggled out there most of yesterday," McIlroy said. "I thought did I well to be under par by the end of the day. I fought back after some very sloppy rusty golf over the first 14 holes.

"And then today I came out and I don't really know if anything clicked because I don't think I hit enough shots to know. But it was definitely needed. I would have been happy with anything around 70 the way I played, and then to come in and shoot 66 is quite the bonus."

American Patrick Reed, involved in a pre-tournament spat with McIlroy and alleged to have thrown a tee at his rival, joined the Northern Irishman on six under through the opening 18 holes thanks to a 15-foot eagle putt at the last.

Reed, who missed the cut in Abu Dhabi last week, said: "I'm obviously really happy with the way I played. I felt like last week wasn't really a reflection of all the hard work I've been doing in the off-season.

"To come out this week and feel like I was able to put everything together and to have my mind right on game planning and course management was definitely a plus. I feel like I had full control of the golf ball and made a couple of putts."

Reed and McIlroy will play their second rounds on Saturday, but others began their second circuits before darkness brought an end to Friday's play.

The first-round joint lead was snatched away from Reed and McIlroy by Swedish amateur Ludvig Aberg and Englishman Ian Poulter, who both carded seven-under 65s.

Aberg then stumbled in the early stages of his second round, slipping back to five under through seven holes, but Poulter had a share of the overnight lead on eight under after making birdie at the third, the last hole he completed.

Alongside Poulter was fellow English veteran Richard Bland, who followed a 67 by picking up three shots in the opening four holes of his second round.

Spain's Angel Hidalgo held third place on seven under after he followed a 66 with an early birdie in round two, while South African Louis de Jager joined McIlroy and Reed in a share of fourth position.

Rory McIlroy was tied with rival Patrick Reed for the lead after the delayed conclusion to round one of the Dubai Desert Classic, though the Northern Irishman was not entirely satisfied with his performance.

The build-up to the tournament has been dominated by a spat between world number one McIlroy and LIV Golf defector Reed.

American Reed labelled McIlroy an "immature little child" for blanking him at the practice range and was also alleged to have thrown a tee at McIlroy.

McIlroy said Reed's lawyer served him with court papers on Christmas Eve, although Reed has said he was not behind the subpoena, with the case concerned being one brought by American attorney Larry Klayman relating to divisions between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour.

A strong start from both players on a rain-delayed day one raised the possibility of an intriguing pairing over the weekend.

And the chances of that happening were increased with McIlroy – who started on the back nine – closing birdie, eagle, birdie to finish his first round at six under par.

Reed matched that score thanks to a 15-foot eagle at the last.

Asked for his thoughts about how he played in round one, McIlroy said: "Honestly, not very good. I struggled out there most of yesterday. I thought I did well to be under par by the end of the day. I fought back after some very sloppy rusty golf over the first sort of 14 holes.

"And then today I came out and I don't really know if anything clicked because I don't think I hit enough shots to know, but it was definitely needed.

"I would have been happy with anything around 70 the way I played, and then to come in and shoot 66 is quite the bonus."

The highlight for McIlroy was holing out from 114 yards out of the sand at the eighth (his 17th).

"You know, I wouldn't say I'm the best fairway bunker player in the world. The desert is a little nicer, it's a little more packed down, so you get some better lies," he said.

"All I was thinking about was catching it clean. My tendency out of those lies is to hit it a little bit heavy. As soon as I struck it – went down the grip a little bit just to make sure of the strike – I knew it came out really nicely and it was right down the pin.

"Again, anything inside of 20 feet, I would have been happy with, so that was certainly a bonus."

Rivals Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed made positive starts to the Dubai Desert Classic after heavy rain caused play on day one to be delayed by over six hours.

World number one McIlroy was involved in an eve-of-tournament spat with American Reed, who labelled the Northern Irishman an "immature little child" for blanking him at the practice range. Reed was also alleged to have thrown a tee at McIlroy.

McIlroy said Reed's lawyer served him with court papers on Christmas Eve, although Reed has said he was not behind the subpoena, with the case concerned being one brought by American attorney Larry Klayman relating to divisions between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour.

"I'm living in reality. I don't know where he’s living," McIlroy said of his snub for Reed, one of the players who has signed up or LIV Golf. "If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't expect a hello or a handshake."

They could yet end up as playing partners later this week, which would be awkward, and Reed sped out to four under par through 16 holes once play finally got under way on Thursday, before bad light halted players in their tracks.

McIlroy, who began on the back nine, was playing his 16th hole when he abandoned for the day, having reached two under and given himself a great birdie opportunity, leaving himself a five-foot putt for the morning at the par-three seventh.

Playing partner Ryan Fox missed out on a hole in one when his tee shot to the same hole, bang on target, rolled up just six inches short. The New Zealander tapped that in to go to three under.

That put Fox into a share of eighth place, with McIlroy tied for 12th.

Belgium's Thomas Pieters led on five under through 15 holes, one ahead of a group of six, with Reed, Englishman Tommy Fleetwood and Frenchman Victor Perez approaching the end of their rounds, while Matthew Jordan, Daniel Gavins and Oliver Wilson reached the clubhouse. Gavins made bogey after a missed putt at the last, electing to play on after the hooter and forfeiting a share of the lead.

Only 66 players of the 132 in the tournament got going on Thursday, meaning Friday was set to be busy, with those left with holes to complete set to start at 08:00 local time (04:00 GMT), and the rest of the field beginning their first rounds at 08:20, with second rounds to follow.

Padraig Harrington was having a dismal round, with the former Open and US PGA champion at eight over after 13 holes.

After a challenging weather day, leader Pieters said of the course: "I think it played fair. Obviously they guarded against some of the conditions, and they moved a few tees forward on holes like 12, where you normally are hitting long irons, and you're hitting short wedges. If you found fairways and had ball-in-hand, it was definitely playable."

Rory McIlroy saw no need to defend his actions after he blanked Patrick Reed at a practice session ahead of the Dubai Desert Classic.

Reed is alleged to have thrown a golf tee at McIlroy after the world number one refused to acknowledge him.

McIlroy has stressed he did not see a tee being thrown at him, while Reed denied it.

However, McIlroy explained he has no desire to speak to Reed, who the Northern Irishman has claimed sent him court papers on Christmas Eve.

Reed is one of several high-profile players to have joined the LIV Golf Invitational Series last year, a Saudi-backed breakaway from the PGA Tour, the main tour for which McIlroy has become an unofficial spokesperson over the past 12 months.

"Patrick came up to say hello and I didn't really want him to," McIlroy told reporters in Dubai.

"From my recollection, that was it. I didn't see a tee. I didn't feel a tee. Obviously, someone else saw that.

"But it's definitely a storm in a teacup. I can't believe it's actually turned into a story; it's nothing.

"I was down by my bag, and he came up to me. I was busy working and sort of doing my practice. I didn't feel the need to acknowledge him."

It is unclear if McIlroy will take any further steps, though the 33-year-old added: "I didn't see a tee coming my direction at all, but apparently that's what happened. And if roles were reversed and I'd have thrown that tee at him, I'd be expecting a lawsuit."

McIlroy also suggested Reed must be living in a different world if he believed the four-time major champion would shake his hand.

"I was subpoenaed by his lawyer on Christmas Eve," McIlroy said.

"Trying to have a nice time with my family and someone shows up on your doorstep and delivers that, you're not going to take that well.

"I'm living in reality, I don't know where he's living. If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't expect a hello or a handshake."

McIlroy again reiterated his opposition to LIV Golf, saying: "There's no point in just being a mouthpiece when you can't back that up by playing good golf and showing people the rewards people can have out here if they are playing well.

"It's a merit-based system. That's the thing that I've always struggled with: if a five-year-old boy or girl know that they work hard and they shoot the scores, there's a merit-based system in golf all the way through junior golf, amateur golf, all the way up to the professional level, and they can make it to the top levels of the game.

"This is the one thing that's come into the game that has disrupted that. It's not a merit-based system."

Rory McIlroy wasted a glorious opportunity to win a third Dubai Desert Classic title in a gripping conclusion that saw Viktor Hovland edge Richard Bland in a play-off.

After making steady progress up the leaderboard on Friday and Saturday, McIlroy had a share of the lead alongside Hovland and Bland heading into the final hole on Sunday.

But the four-time major winner, aiming to add to his 2009 and 2015 triumphs in Dubai, sent his approach shot from 267 yards way right on the 18th and it ended in the water.

McIlroy gave himself hope by chipping a shot within 15 feet of the hole to remain on course for par, but his stroke brushed the cup and left him 11-under for the tournament.

That put him a stroke behind Hovland and Bland, who carded a six-under 66 and four-under 68 for the day respectively to finish level and take the competition to an extra hole at the Emirates Golf Club.

Hovland finished strongly with two birdies and an eagle on the final three holes to set the clubhouse lead, which Bland matched with two birdies in a row to conclude his round.

It was Hovland who prevailed in the first play-off hole, the Norwegian rolling in a three-footer for par after Bland's bogey opened the door.

The 24-year-old has now won three of his last five events, having also prevailed at the Hero World Challenge and Mayakoba Golf Classic towards the end of 2021.

Hovland started the day six strokes behind overnight leader Justin Harding, who endured a poor final round, which included a triple-bogey on the 11th to finish in joint-fourth.

"This is pretty wild. I didn't really think this was possible going into today," Hovland said.

"I knew I had to shoot a really low number but a lot of things had to go my way and I am thankful that they did."

Rory McIlroy remains in contention to win the Dubai Desert Classic for a third time after moving to within two shots of leader Justin Harding ahead of the final round.

The four-time major winner shot up the leaderboard into a share of fifth place on Friday, four behind Harding, and halved that deficit with a three-under 69 third round on Saturday.

McIlroy, who previously won the tournament as a 19-year-old in 2009 and again in 2015, initially struggled to make up ground as he found himself just one under after nine holes.

An eagle at the par-five 10th breathed fresh life into the Northern Irishman's round, though he balanced out a couple of birdies with two bogeys in a rather mixed back nine.

But the former world number one is now 10 under for the tournament and hot on the heels of Harding, who added to his opening rounds of 65 and 68 with a one-under 71.

"I think it was a fair reflection of how I played," McIlroy said. "There were a couple of good things and a couple of bad things in there, but I feel like it all evened out by the end.

"It was nice to birdie the last, shoot something in the 60s and play myself into the last group tomorrow.

"I think as well, this late in the day, it starts to get hard to hole putts on the greens because they're a little crusty and got progressively faster as the day went on.

"I started to putt a little more defensively on the back nine. All of that leads to a pretty challenging day."

McIlroy's Ryder Cup team-mate Tommy Fleetwood is a shot further back after recovering from back-to-back bogeys at the fifth and sixth to move to nine under.

Erik van Rooyen also trails Harding by three shots, while Paul Casey, Tyrrell Hatton, Bernd Wiesberger, Richard Bland, Adrian Meronk and Fabrizio Zanotti are four off the pace.

Hatton started round three in second place, but he lacked consistency on Saturday and was made to pay for a double-bogey at the 15th when finding the water.

Shane Lowry enjoyed the lowest-scoring round of the day at the Majlis Course with 68, despite a double-bogey at the ninth, though he is way down in joint-23rd. 

Rory McIlroy predicted he would enjoy the weekend at the Dubai Desert Classic after a 66 on day two moved him firmly into contention.

The former world number one vaulted up the leaderboard into a share of fifth place, following up a steady 71 with a bogey-free round containing four birdies and an eagle.

A two-time winner of this tournament, having been champion as a 19-year-old in 2009 and again in 2015, McIlroy has happy memories and there could be more cause to celebrate come Sunday.

He moved to seven under par through 36 holes, putting him just four shots behind the leader, Justin Harding of South Africa, who added a 68 to his opening 65.

England's Tyrrell Hatton sits second on nine under after matching McIlroy's score. Nobody beat 66 in the second round, with Germany's Nicolai von Dellingshausen also making the same score, in his case atoning for an opening 77 to reach a share of 38th place.

South African Erik van Rooyen and Paraguayan Fabrizio Zanotti share second on eight under par, with McIlroy one shot back in a group that also includes England's Richard Bland, Norway's Viktor Hovland, Adrian Meronk of Poland, and the first-round leader Joachim B Hansen, who had four bogeys and four birdies in a level-par 72. Tommy Fleetwood, Lee Westwood and Paul Casey were all on six under.

McIlroy chipped in for eagle at 13, while leader Harding, who began on the back nine, holed from 183 yards at the par-four sixth.

There was satisfaction but also frustration for McIlroy after his round, as he said: "It could have been way lower. I certainly hit the ball good enough for it to be a few shots lower. I hit the ball as good as I've done in a long time, and it could have been a few better, but 66 is a good score and sets me up for a nice weekend."

McIlroy said he had been making technical alterations to his swing on the range, and added: "I thought I hit my irons a lot better today and was in control of the driver a bit better too."

To his frustration, McIlroy has not won a major since reaching four big ones in 2014, but he had two victories on the PGA Tour last year and was firmly in the hunt for the DP World Tour Championship in November until a closing 74 scuppered his chances.

The Northern Irishman tied for 12th last week at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, enjoying a strong weekend after only just making the cut. This time he is in a better position from which to strike, and he likes his game at the moment.

"I think with how I ended last year, I certainly found something. I got a little bit of momentum, I won on the PGA Tour and had a really good chance to win here in Dubai at the end of last season," McIlroy said speaking to the DP World Tour website.

"But it feels good. There are so many ebbs and flows in this game and the career's so long that it's hard to compare one season to the next, and how you're feeling and how you're hitting it. But looking back on my last 12 or 14 years, the body of work is there.

"I've played well when I haven't felt so good and I've played poorly when I've felt really good. So it's just a matter of keep showing up each and every day and try your best and try to put the lowest score possible on the scorecard and move on."

Sergio Garcia made a positive start to his year as a five-under-par 67 put him among the front-runners at the Dubai Desert Classic.

Spaniard Garcia had just two top-10 finishes on the European Tour last season, but one of those came at this event, and he showed his liking for the tournament he won in 2017 with another sparkling round.

It was not enough for the lead, with Denmark's Joachim B Hansen ahead of the field thanks to an impressive 65 that featured birdies at four of the first five holes.

Garcia held a share of third place through 18 holes, with South African Justin Harding nudging up to second on six under through 17 holes before darkness forced him to delay completing his round until Friday.

It was as a 19-year-old in 1999 that Garcia first won on the European Tour, which has been renamed as the DP World Tour this season, with that breakthrough triumph coming at the Irish Open.

He was a champion twice on the tour that year, landed six victories in the 2000s and added eight European Tour titles in the 2010s, including a Masters victory, which counted to his win list on both sides of the Atlantic.

Now, at the age of 42, Garcia is bidding to win on the tour in a fourth successive decade, and this was a strong start, as he made five birdies and did not drop a shot.

"It was good. I think obviously it got a little bit more challenging the last couple of holes with left-to-right wind," he said. "I made a couple of nice par saves at the right times and kept it in play for the most part. I hit a good amount of greens and when I didn't, my chipping and putting was there to help me. So that was good."

In an interview on the European Tour website, Garcia added: "I still have a lot of things I want to achieve. I want to keep trying, to get better, challenge myself to improve. That's never easy and as you get older it's obviously tougher, but I'll work hard and hopefully keep fighting."

Garcia had company on five under from fellow Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal, as well as Englishman Tommy Fleetwood, Italy's Andrea Pavan, Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee and Paraguayan Fabrizio Zanotti.

Open champion Collin Morikawa was in a group on four under, with defending Dubai champion Paul Casey two shots further back. Rory McIlroy was three under par through five holes of his round, having started on the back nine, but he fell away to a one-under 71 for a share of 46th place.