I purchased a Hampton Bay Ceiling fan. (Windward III model 404141)
In the store it was installed close to the ceiling without a down rod which is what I wanted. Now at home I see the picture in the manual shows a down rod and I wanted to know if the fan could be safely installed without the down rod. There did not seem to be another model in the store.
Do I need a different model or can I adapt this one?
I appreciate any help you can give.

The most recent fan that I bought could be installed without the down rod and that information was clearly in the instructions.

I don't believe this model can be close mounted, but I could be remembering incorrectly. If you saw it close mounted at Home Depot (and you're sure it just wasn't a really short downrod) then it probably can be. If you remove the downrod coupling cover, and the cover ring on the bottom of the canopy, are there sets of holes that match? Are there extra screws left when you assemble the fan with a downrod-- a matching set of 3-6?