ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Rory McIlroy’s pursuit at the Abu Dhabi Championship took a hit on Saturday as he encountered difficulties on the final hole. After finding water with his drive, he ended the round with a double bogey, positioning himself five strokes behind the leader, Paul Waring, as he prepared for the final round.

After trailing by nine strokes through 36 holes, McIlroy, currently ranked third in the world, had made significant progress during the third round. He had closed the gap to just three shots behind when he faced a setback on the par-5 No. 18. His tee shot veered off course, bouncing off rocks and landing in the water. Following a penalty drop, his fourth shot found the greenside bunker, leading to a disappointing score of 7 on the hole. He finished the day with a score of 3-under 69, bringing his overall tally to 13 under.

“The leaders were not pulling away, and I was starting to make a move,” McIlroy reflected, noting that he had made six birdies after initially bogeying the first hole. “Then one mistake—my drive at 18. It was an unfortunate timing error.”

Compounding McIlroy’s frustration was the fact that Waring, ranked 229th, had been leading by five shots after the second round, despite being one of only two players in the top 29 to shoot over par on Saturday. Waring’s round of 1-over 73 reduced his lead to a slim one stroke, leaving him at 18 under overall. Close behind him in second place was Niklas Norgaard, who finished the round with a score of 69. Several players, including Tommy Fleetwood (71), Thorbjorn Olesen (71), Sebastien Soderberg (68), and Shane Lowry (66), were tied for third place.

With only a tie for 13th place, McIlroy aims for a victory that would earn him the Race to Dubai title for the sixth time, equaling the late Seve Ballesteros, while being just two titles shy of Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight.

“I’ve put myself in a bit of a hole,” McIlroy admitted, but still expressed optimism regarding the final round ahead. “I head into tomorrow feeling like I still have a chance.” Notably, he had also experienced a triple bogey on the 17th hole the day before.