Michael Kim left in awe of Rory McIlroy driving the green at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship

Michael Kim has had a decent year so far. Weeks ago, he carded a T9 at the DP World India Championship at New Delhi, finishing six strokes behind the winner, Tommy Fleetwood. Currently, Kim is competing at Yas Links for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

The golf tournament on the European Tour will see golfers compete for the massive $9,000,000 prize purse from November 6 to 9. However, one thing that caught Michael Kim's eye was one of his fellow DP World Tour pros' games at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. The golfer recently shared a post on his X (previously Twitter) account about Rory McIlroy.

During the opening round of the DP World Tour event at Yas Links, the Northern Irishman was 2-under through the first nine holes. While playing on the par-4 10th, spectators at Abu Dhabi caught a glimpse of McIlroy's driving ability. The 2025 Masters Champ drove a considerable distance over the luscious greens while shooting for the 395-yard-long hole.

Michael Kim could not help but share a hilarious take on his own birdie approach on the par-4 tenth with a 7-wood and a 60° wedge. Kim also explained how he did not expect McIlroy's driver to reach the green. He wrote by reposting DP World Tour's clip on his X (previously Twitter) timeline:

"😂 didn’t realize that was even a possibility I went 7wd, 60* for a birdie of my own at least"

Rory McIlroy ended up carding a birdie on the par-4 10th hole at Yas Links. He concluded the first round at Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in the 27th spot in the leaderboard with 4 under par 68.

Michael Kim, on the other hand, currently stands in 6th place in the leaderboard. The golfer carded two bogeys and nine birdies over the front and back nine, including a set of consecutive three from holes 7 to 9. Kim carded a one-round total of 7 under par 65.

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"Pretty disappointing" - When Michael Kim joked over Rory McIlroy's driving distance

Last year, McIlroy was competing in the season-ending DP World Tour Championship at the Earth Course in Jumeirah Golf Estates. During one of the rounds, the five-time major champion encountered a hilarious moment while trying to tee off. Although McIlroy was spotted gearing up to deliver a powerful swing, he completely failed to do so.

After the video was shared by DP World Tour on X, Michael Kim could not help but throw a hilarious dig at the golfer from Holywood, Ireland. In the comment section of the X post, Kim wrote:

"Pretty disappointing haha I expected better"

Take a look at the golfer's funny dig at McIlroy on X:

Kim's comment below DP World Tour's post / Source: @Mike_kim714 on X

Although Kim trolled McIlroy for the failed drive, he has often praised the latter. When Rory won the career grand slam with his triumph in Augusta National this year, the one-time PGA Tour winner admired McIlroy. In another instance, Kim used Rory as a benchmark while complimenting Cameron Champ's driving distance.

Edited by Pravashis Biswas