Up close, Rory McIlroy teeing off at the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates, the host of this week’s DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, looks no different than it would anywhere else in the world.
His swing is balanced, fluid and powerful, and his ball flies far and straight, landing on a lush green fairway. There’s water around, some rocks and sand. The skyscrapers surrounding the course present a nice contrast to an always blue sky. But overall, the course looks like another pristine tournament venue for elite professional golfers.