Rory McIlroy fell four shots behind leader Tyrrell Hatton after three rounds of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, dimming his hopes of a record-equalling eighth Race to Dubai title, BBC Sport reported. McIlroy, the Northern Irishman and six-time major winner, had started Saturday tied for the lead with Hatton but shot a 72 on the Earth Course in Dubai, while the Englishman posted a four-under-par 68 and stayed out front. Hatton, at nine under for the tournament, holds a one-shot lead over France's Victor Perez, with Sweden's Mikael Lindberg third at six under. McIlroy is among a group of four at five under, tied for fourth with Australia's Adam Scott, Spain's Eugenio Chacarra and Italy's Francesco Laporta.

Chacarra is the current leader in the Race to Dubai standings. McIlroy began the week more than 500 points behind him, knowing that a win would guarantee an eighth season-long crown, matching Colin Montgomerie's record. A third-round 72 does not eliminate him, but it leaves him needing a large Sunday and some help from the players ahead, including the man who now has the 54-hole lead. Selected others on the BBC leaderboard included England's Dan Bradbury, South Africa's Jayden Schaper and Norway's Kristoffer Reitan at four under, Jon Rahm at three under, and Patrick Reed and Tommy Fleetwood at three over.

This is a weekend update on a championship whose first 36 holes had McIlroy and Hatton sharing the lead, a scene already reported earlier in the week. The new facts are Saturday's scores, Hatton's one-shot advantage, and McIlroy's drop into the five-under group. The Race to Dubai math still turns on whether McIlroy can win the tournament; after a 72, that path is steeper than it was at the start of the day.

The verified picture is a 54-hole leaderboard, not a finished season title. One round remains, Hatton is the man to catch, and McIlroy's bid for an eighth Race to Dubai crown is still alive, but no longer from a share of the lead. McIlroy took the outright lead with an eagle three on the par-five seventh, then bogeyed the eighth, ninth and 10th. A birdie on the 14th was followed by a dropped shot on the 15th, and he finished with a birdie at the par-five 18th after narrowly missing a six-foot eagle putt. Hatton scrambled a par at the last after driving into the water and finding a greenside bunker, and will play alongside Perez, who carded a 67, on Sunday. "It would mean a lot to go on and win tomorrow," Hatton said. "The course is playing difficult this week and there's a lot of fantastic players just behind." Spain's Jon Rahm, who could clinch the Race to Dubai title with a Sunday victory, fell six shots off the lead with a third consecutive 71. Chacarra carded a 68 that included nine birdies, three bogeys and a double bogey. McIlroy will play alongside England's Dan Bradbury, who climbed to four under with a 66. McIlroy can still win the season title if he finishes in the top four and Chacarra falls down the order.