Pro at MJ’s club already 25 back in DPWT debut – and one player is miffed

Rory McIlroy is leading the 60-man Dubai Invitational after he fired a 9-under 62 on Thursday at Dubai Creek.

Already 25 shots back of McIlroy is last-place Ken Weyand.

Weyand is a 54-year-old club pro who serves as director of golf, general manager and president of Grove XXIII, Michael Jordan’s ultra-exclusive golf club in Hobe Sound, Florida. Prior to this week, Weyand had yet to compete in a world-ranked tournament.

Playing alongside Richard Mansell, Weyand failed to record a birdie. He instead carded seven bogeys, three doubles and a triple at the par-4 seventh. He made just seven pars, and at 16 over, he’s last by 10 shots.

Diving further into the stats, Weyand ranked second-to-last in greens hit (27.8%) and last in both scrambling (23.1%) and putts hit (35).

Weyand got into the tournament, which has a pro-am component to it, as a sponsor exemption, though at least one DP World Tour member took issue with his inclusion.

“Limited man field, and old Ken Weyand gets an invite and then does this,” Eddie Pepperell tweeted. “I don’t care if he’s Ken from Barbie, it shouldn’t happen.”

Weyand won’t be trunk-slamming after Friday, though. This is a no-cut event, so Weyand, barring a withdrawal or other circumstance that would force him out of the tournament, will be playing 72 holes.

In his Twitter bio, he writes, “Trying to be better every day.”

So, maybe there’s hope for improvement over these next three rounds.