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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Liam Prenderville

LIV Golf's Patrick Reed claims "small victory" after bumping into Rory McIlroy at hotel

Patrick Reed has revealed he bumped into Rory McIlroy again in Dubai, with the world No.1 seemingly no longer giving him the cold shoulder.

The pair were involved in an incident earlier this week as they prepared to play in the DP World Tour's Desert Classic, when McIlroy ignored LIV Golf rebel Reed's advances as they practiced on the range.

Reed responded by throwing a tee in the Northern Irishman's direction before words were exchanged in the days that followed - the American calling McIlroy an "immature little child" as golf's civil war continues.

But relations seemed to have mended somewhat on Thursday when Reed went to leave his hotel in Dubai only to discover play had been delayed due to storms.

“So, I get myself ready, and then a while later, I’m standing out in front of the hotel with my caddy and my coach, and we’re saying, ‘Where’s the car?’” Reed told Irish Golfer .

“It’s now about 10 minutes late, and the next thing you know, Rory gets out of his courtesy car, as he’s also staying at the same hotel, and he says, ‘Hey, just to let you know, we’re not playing, as they’ve suspended the start of play.’ He’s also saying, ‘We’re off the golf course, buddy. We’re off the golf course,’

“So, I say, ‘OK, thanks for that,’ and head back to my room and go back to bed. I’m not sure if Rory was acknowledging me, my coach, my caddy or all three of us, but whatever, I’ll take it as a small victory."

On the course, the pair shared an early lead on Friday after completing a first round six-under 66, although a number of players were still to complete their round.

Play had been delayed again after more rain overnight and there are suggestions the tournament may be cut to 54 holes - the duration used by LIV in their events.

Speaking on the incident, McIlroy said: "It's been blown out of proportion and once the golf starts it's nice that we can all just focus on the birdies and the bogeys and not all the rest of the nonsense."

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