Staff WriterThere are rounds that look tidy on paper and then there are rounds that look like they’ve been ironed, folded and placed neatly in a drawer. Patrick Reed delivered the latter on Friday, firing a bogey-free 66 to take a one-shot lead at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic—the sort of golf that makes the rest of the field feel like they’re chasing a mirage across the Emirates Golf Club fairways.
Reed, the 2018 Masters champion and a man who clearly enjoys the Dubai desert air, has been flirting with this tournament like a rom-com protagonist who refuses to admit he’s in love. Runner-up here in 2023 and inside the top ten last year, the American began round two four shots behind overnight leader Francesco Molinari—another Major winner, another calm pair of hands, another fellow who rarely looks ruffled.
But Reed wasted no time turning the second round into a quiet takeover. Two birdies and an eagle on the front nine pulled him level with Molinari, and then the momentum gathered like a sandstorm you can see coming but still can’t quite stop. Two more birdies at the first and third saw Reed reach nine under par, before he parred his way home to complete that blemish-free card and move one clear.
And Reed’s explanation sounded less like a miracle and more like a very sensible day at the office—albeit an office with palm trees and a leaderboard.
“You know, pretty good warmup this morning. I feel like yesterday I hit the ball, you know, decent. Just kind of hard to tell with how hard that wind was blowing. I mean, game felt good. Kind of went out there and gave myself a lot of good looks, good opportunities, and only missing one green today, that definitely helps.
You know, I went around this place, hit 17 greens and the one I missed was in the fairway, basic chip. You know, you’re able to do that around this type of golf course, you know, you’re able to shoot a number, and I was lucky enough to see a couple putts go in early and it just went from there.”
If that reads like a man politely describing a bank heist, that’s because it kind of was. Reed didn’t so much attack as suffocate the course—no drama, no loose ends, no “what was he thinking?” moments. He even offered a post-round confession that will resonate with every golfer who’s ever tried to pull off a shot that existed only in their imagination.
“A little bit of both. Felt like yesterday, especially on that back nine, I tried to do too much. Tried to take on shots that I probably shouldn’t have especially with the conditions and how the greens were, and because of that, short-sided myself a couple times in the rough. The way that golf course was playing yesterday with how firm and fast the greens were, you just couldn’t short-side yourself in the rough and I seemed to do that whenever I made bogey. Missed a couple short putts.”
Sullivan’s Dubai rollercoaster ends with an eagle and a roar
One shot back sits England’s Andy Sullivan, who produced the joint-lowest round of the week with a sparkling seven-under 65—equal parts fireworks and fightback. The 38-year-old got his skates on early in the opening Rolex Series event of the season, rattling off four straight birdies from the third and adding another at the ninth to turn in 30. That is not a score; that is a statement.
A sixth birdie took him to seven under, and then the Hero Dubai Desert Classic reminded him that desert golf can turn on you like a moody camel. A bogey-birdie-bogey run from the 12th slowed the charge, and another dropped shot at the 16th threatened to knock the air out of the tyres. Sullivan, to his credit, responded with a birdie at the 17th, then hit a “hold my tea” approach into the last and poured in the eagle to surge to eight under.
His assessment was pure golfer: pleased, exhausted, and fully aware the course is always one bad drive away from chaos.
“I felt like I battled hard in the wind yesterday and swung it well. I was confident going out there today and playing well. The front nine it wasn’t as windy. So hit a lot of good shots and holed a lot of good putts. Then was out in 30. It was a bit exciting. The back nine was a bit of a roller coaster, up and down, but nice to bounce back after the bogeys on 17 and 18.”
He also offered a reminder of the simplest truth at Emirates Golf Club: miss fairways, invite trouble, and start bargaining with the golfing gods.
“Yeah, just this golf course, you start hitting in the rough, and you’re praying on a bit of a lie to get it on the green. So I just drew two poor lies. I had to chip out and didn’t get up-and-down. You know, that’s what it does to you. You have to hit fairways to make birdies, and missed a couple of them. Made bogeys. But obviously happy with the response at the end.”
Molinari steady, Pavan pleasantly surprised as the chase tightens
Behind the leading pair, Italian duo Francesco Molinari and Andrea Pavan sit one shot further back, keeping the leaderboard nicely bunched as the weekend approaches at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic.
Molinari, who set the pace after round one, didn’t quite find the same putting magic in round two—but he stayed composed and pointed to a solid back nine as a reason for optimism.
“It’s always tough to follow a day like yesterday but I played solid. The putts didn’t drop as much as yesterday. A lot of near misses. But yeah, still happy with the back nine especially. I played solid all day. It would have been nice to hole a few more putts but hopefully keep that for the weekend.
I was playing well, hitting the shots, and just to keep going. So it was nice to see a couple of putts dropping on the back, not too many. But I’m rolling the ball nicely. 72 holes, you’re going to get some spots where things just don’t work, and yeah, just keep going and see what happens in the next two days.”
Pavan, meanwhile, sounded like a man pleasantly surprised to be getting along with a course that has historically treated him like an unwelcome guest. He’s happy—yet very aware there’s still plenty of golf left.
“Never really had much success around here. But yeah, happy to have had a good start, and there’s 36 holes left. I felt like I played pretty well. I felt like the last few years, kind of since I got my card back, you know, I missed by one, so I was really struggling around the greens because generally, I mean, my tee shot’s always been kind of poor.
But the last few years around here, I felt like I played well enough to make the cut. If you’re struggling on these greens, it’s tough. They are very fast and very solid breaks and this week, they were very tricky. I felt like yesterday, I didn’t really have the pace, and today was good. Still missed a few. But yeah, I was just overall happy.”
Højgaard flies late; Hatton and Schaper stay in touch
Denmark’s Nicolai Højgaard grabbed solo fifth at six under after birdieing five holes on the back nine in a bogey-free 67—an end-of-round surge that tends to make players walk a little taller and caddies suddenly remember they “always believed.”
A shot further back at five under is a packed group featuring Race to Dubai Rankings delivered by DP World leader Jayden Schaper (68), fellow South African Hennie du Plessis, Sweden’s Joakim Lagergren, Finland’s Oliver Lindell, and England’s Tyrrell Hatton—names close enough to the top that a hot front nine on Saturday could turn this tournament into a full-blown scrap.
And that, ultimately, is the charm of the Hero Dubai Desert Classic: two rounds in, nothing is settled. Reed has the lead and the form, Sullivan has the momentum and a fresh memory of eagle on 18, and the rest of the field is hovering like bargain hunters outside a luxury shop—waiting for the doors to open.
