Through 2005 and 2006, Rory McIlroy continued building steam. He repeated as champion of the West of Ireland Championship and of the Irish Close Championships in 2006. And he won the 2006 European Amateur Championship.
McIlroy also made a few appearances in professional tournaments during this time period, and in early 2007 he made his first cut in a professional tournament. It happened at the European Tour's Dubai Desert Classic in early February. McIlroy opened with back-to-back scores of 69, then shot 71 and 76 on the weekend. He finished tied for 52nd place. He was 17 years and 10 months old at the time.
