Rory McIlroy showed off his precision by knocking a drone out of the sky at a driving range in Abu Dhabi.
His impressive strike appeared to delight Real Madrid icon Gareth Bale, who was stood alongside him for the one-of-a-kind challenge.
Bale, who is a keen golfer himself, had several near misses before McIlroy‘s shot brought the drone down.
“Let’s go home, it’s a wrap,” the ex-Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur star said after sharing a high five with the World No. 3.
The pair took on the driving range challenge as McIlroy strengthened his position at the top of the Race to Dubai Rankings after finishing tied for third at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
A four-time Major winner who is chasing a sixth Race to Dubai crown, McIlroy extended his lead over Thriston Lawrence to 1,785.02 points.
He has only played 11 counting events throughout this season but has racked up almost 5,000 points.
Lawrence, now the only man who can catch McIlroy, has picked up 3,212.6 points from 25 tournaments.
The season-long contest is a two-horse race heading to the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, and the Northern Irishman is feeling confident.
“It’s been a good week and I’ll head to Dubai in a good position,” McIlroy said on Sunday, November 10.
“I saw Thriston making a charge today, and I was keeping one eye on the leaderboard and looking at what he was doing. I saw he posted 20.
“Obviously I wanted to birdie the last, anyway, but I know that birdie, even if it isn’t to win the tournament this week, it obviously gives me that little bit extra of a cushion going into next week.
“Every shot counts at this moment in time, and I was glad to make the four at the last and at least give myself half a chance at this tournament this week but also give myself a little bit more of a cushion going into Dubai as well.”
Lawrence, who finished tied for sixth at Yas Links, will do all he can to catch McIlroy at the climax this week, but insists he is already proud of his performance.
The South African star requires a win at the Earth Course, but even that will not be enough if McIlroy finishes solo 11th or better.
“I’m just proud of myself and how patient I stayed and just executed a lot of good shots,” Lawrence said.
“Stayed committed out there, and my putter was working nicely. Everything just worked out perfectly, and unfortunately not my week this week but hopefully next week.”
If McIlroy wins his sixth Race To Dubai crown – also known as the Harry Vardon Trophy – he will move alongside Seve Ballesteros to second on the all-time winners list.
The legendary Colin Montgomerie tops the list with eight wins.
