Rory McIlroy’s patience was tested Thursday on his comeback from an injury-filled and winless 2017, needing three late birdies to register a 3-under-par 69 that left him three strokes behind first-round leaders Tommy Fleetwood and Hideto Tanihara at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Fleetwood, the defending Abu Dhabi champion and last year’s European Tour money-list winner, continued his excellent form by hitting all 18 greens in regulation.