Rickie Fowler shot a 3-under 69 on Sunday to win the Abu Dhabi Championship by one shot over Thomas Pieters.
Fowler built a four-shot cushion after six holes, then held on for his fourth worldwide victory in the past nine months. McIlroy, who entered the day three shots off the pace, carded a 68 to finish in third place along with Henrik Stenson.
Top-ranked Jordan Spieth finished in a tie for fifth, five shots behind Fowler.
Fowler made double-bogey on the seventh hole, trimming his lead to just one, then turned around and chipped in for eagle on the following hole. In typical Fowler fashion, the drama continued with a chip-in birdie on the 17th hole to build a two-shot lead. Playing partner Pieters kept the heat on Fowler, however, and narrowly missed an eagle putt on the 18th hole that would have forced a playoff.
"This was my first full field (event) in 2016 and is a great way to start," Fowler, who played in the year-opening Tournament of Champions in Hawaii, told reporters. "We had a very strong field here. A lot of the guys were playing well. This is a step in the right direction."
Fowler is expected to climb to No. 4 in the world rankings Monday, behind only Spieth, Jason Day and McIlroy.
