British Open:Rory McIlroy was talking a good game ahead of the British Open and delivered in fine style at St Andrews today when signing for a nine-under-par 63 at the Old Course to post the clubhouse lead. The 21-year-old leads South African Louis Oosthuizen by two.
Little or no wind, coupled with invitingly soft and slow greens, meant conditions were ripe for low scoring and McIlroy took full advantage by posting the lowest first round in British Open history, equalling the lowest round in major history.
It could have been even better and McIlroy may rue missed three-foot birdie putt at the 17th, but he can have few complaints and neither can the galleries after he treated them to a stellar round of golf.
Informed soon afterwards of his achievement, the ever-modest Holywood golfer joked: “So far, so far. There’re still a lot of people to go out this afternoon.
“We really needed to take advantage of the conditions out there this morning … the course was there to be taken apart and there’s a lot of scores out there that are really good. I’m just happy to get in the clubhouse with a 63.”
On that missed chance on the 17th, he added: “Seventeen is a hole that’s been kind to me over the last couple of years. I like the way that second shot sets up for me, I can hit a nice high draw in there.
“Where the pin was today I was able to get at it, it was just unfortunate that I didn’t make the putt but I made up for it with a birdie at the last,” he added.
McIlroy admitted the second round may be a different story altogether if the wind picks up and added that, while he’ll wait and see what the conditions are like, he expects to play a little more conservatively.
“We’ll just see what the weather brings tomorrow, but the weather out there is perfect at the moment and I’m sure the guys out there this afternoon will enjoy themselves.”
On a course where he had never failed to break 70 in eight previous visits either as an amateur or professional, McIlroy led by three over South African stablemate Louis Oosthuizen as the first day’s play drew to a close.
McIlroy’s record at the home of golf will strike fear into the hearts of his rivals. Starting with two rounds in the amateur Links Trophy and continuing with the Dunhill Links and ending with today it was staggering — “69, 69, 67, 68, 67, 68, 65, 69, 63.”
That comes to 43 under par and goodness knows what it will be at the end of the week.
Not that the scores really matter now. It is all about the Claret Jug and his bid for a first major just a month after close friend Graeme McDowell broke his duck at the US Open.
There was no problem identifying the hole which ignited his challenge.
Only one under on a morning when world number 455 John Daly, inspired on his return to the course where he won in 1995, reached seven under after 11 holes, McIlroy drove the green on the 352-yard ninth and sank a 15-foot eagle putt.
“It really got me going,” he said.
He came home in a 30 with birdies at the 10th, 11th, 12th, 14th, 15th and the last.
John Daly, in contrast, cooled on the way home and posted a 66, as did playing partner and former Ryder Cup Scot Andrew Coltart, himself only 408th on the rankings and back inside the ropes after two years of radio work.
The wind was picking up as they finished, but that did not stop Oosthuizen threatening to at least catch McIlroy. The 27-year-old, who had his first European Tour victory in March, charged to eight under with three to play, but bogeyed the lengthened 17th and parred the other two.
Daly and Coltart, meanwhile, were joined in third spot by Challenge Tour player Steve Tiley, Welshman Bradley Dredge and Swede Peter Hanson. Lee Westwood, playing with a torn calf muscle, had five successive birdies from the fifth, but played the other 13 holes in level par.
Tiger Woods is also lurking on five under after he too dropped a shot at the 17th to sign for a 67.
"The crowd was great, extremely respectful and it was a great environment to play golf in," Woods said. "It was a good start for me. The new putter was good and I made a lot of putts today."
On the low scoring at St Andrews, he added: "I've never known anything like it in a major championship before".
Pádraig Harrington was one of the few that didn’t make the most of the conditions. He signed for a one-over-par 73 after birdies at 14 and 15 were cancelled out by consecutive bogeys immediately afterwards.
The two-time Open winner double-bogeyed the first, birdied the second and bogeyed the third, but had the chance to claim a shot back at the last only to waste it.
"Certainly the momentum went against me all day, I couldn't have shot a worse score. I hit the ball very solid but couldn't get the ball in close and I couldn't hole those putts from 15 or 20 feet, either.
"Even the few that I did get close I missed, like the one at the last."
He added: "Obviously it's frustrating because it's a course that scoring was good on. On a bad day I would have got away with that but on a very pleasant day for scoring it was tough when everyone else was going forward and I was just treading water all day.
"What do I do? I just stick to doing the same things. I was well prepared coming into it, I couldn't have asked to hit the ball any better, I just should have scored better. Sometimes, overnight, anything can happen, you can hole a few putts and feel you can't miss."
Darren Clarke, who qualified through his second place finish at Loch Lomond last week, dropped a shot at the 17th but could still smile after a two-under round of 70.
"It's links golf and links golf is the purest form of golf. The Open is always the biggest and best tournament in the world but, indeed, here at St Andrews is even more special. Anytime we get to play here I always enjoy it, never more so than at The Open."
Shane Lowry can reflect on a job well done after a birdie at the last helped him sign for a 68 while Colm Moriarty finished on level par.
US Open champion Graeme McDowell bogeyed his first this afternoon, but recovered at the third and a closing birdie moved him to one under, one ahead of fellow Ulsterman Gareth Maybin.
Five-time winner Tom Watson, who went so close last year when being beaten in a four-hole play-off by Stewart Cink, endured a sticky start with three consecutive bogeys from the second before birdies at five and 14.
The veteran was disappointed because, as said afterwards, "the lady didn't have any clothes on out there today, she was there for the taking."
Collated first round scores
(Irl & Gbr unless stated, Irish in bold, par 72):
63 Rory McIlroy
65Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa)
66Peter Hanson (Swe), John Daly (USA), Andrew Coltart, Steven Tiley, Bradley Dredge
67Nick Watney (USA), Tiger Woods (USA), Lucas Glover (USA), Marcel Siem (Ger), Sean O'Hair (USA), Alejandro Canizares (Spa), Lee Westwood, Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe), Y.E. Yang (Kor)
68Ross Fisher, Oliver Wilson, John Senden (Aus), Jin Jeong (Kor), Ricky Barnes (USA), Ryo Ishikawa (Jpn), Vijay Singh (Fij), Robert Rock, Trevor Immelman (Rsa), Shane Lowry,Camilo Villegas (Col), Henrik Stenson (Swe), Ross McGowan
69Retief Goosen (Rsa), Martin Kaymer (Ger), Simon Dyson, Dustin Johnson (USA), Hunter Mahan (USA), Robert Karlsson (Swe), Steve Marino (USA), Robert Allenby (Aus), Mark O'Meara (USA), Paul Lawrie, Ernie Els (Rsa), Paul Casey, Bo Van Pelt (USA), Ignacio Garrido (Spa), Danny Chia (Mal), Edoardo Molinari (Ita)
70Zane Scotland, Chris Wood, Stewart Cink (USA), Darren Clarke,Toru Taniguchi (Jpn), Kyung-Tae Kim (Kor), Kevin Na (USA), J.B. Holmes (USA), Mark Calcavecchia (USA), Justin Rose, Thomas Bjorn (Den), Tano Goya (Arg), Ryan Moore (USA)
71Steve Stricker (USA), Hirofumi Miyase (Jpn), Thomas Aiken (Rsa), Graeme McDowell,Charl Schwartzel (Rsa), Sergio Garcia (Spa), Tom Lehman (USA), Heath Slocum (USA), Jason Day (Aus), Kenny Perry (USA), Stephen Gallacher, Tim Petrovic (USA), Ian Poulter, Eric Chun (Kor), Tim Clark (Rsa)
72Soren Kjeldsen (Den), Sir Nick Faldo, Seung-yul Noh (Kor), Brian Gay (USA), Byeong-Hun An (Kor), Soren Hansen (Den), Geoff Ogilvy (Aus), Todd Hamilton (USA), Ben Crane (USA), Colm Moriarty,Michael Sim (Aus), Zach Johnson (USA), Adam Scott (Aus), Gareth Maybin,Matt Kuchar (USA), Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa), Tom Pernice Jnr. (USA), Alvaro Quiros (Spa), D.A. Points (USA), Mark F Haastrup (Den), Yuta Ikeda (Jpn), Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa), Scott Verplank (USA)
73Jeff Overton (USA), Bill Haas (USA), Alexander Noren (Swe), Marc Leishman (Aus), Mike Weir (Can), Gregory Havret (Fra), Jason Dufner (USA), Tom Watson (USA), Davis Love III (USA), Angel Cabrera (Arg), Rhys Davies, Peter Senior (Aus), Phil Mickelson (USA), Richard S Johnson (Swe), Loren Roberts (USA), Tom Whitehouse, Luke Donald, Padraig Harrington,Thomas Levet (Fra), Jamie Abbott
74Francesco Molinari (Ita), Koumei Oda (Jpn), Colin Montgomerie, Bubba Watson (USA), Darren Fichardt (Rsa), Simon Khan, Mathew Goggin (Aus), Paul Goydos (USA), Martin Laird, Shunsuke Sonoda (Jpn)
75Josh Cunliffe (Rsa), Phillip Archer, Kurt Barnes (Aus), Sandy Lyle, Jason Bohn (USA), Hiroyuki Fujita (Jpn), Thongchai Jaidee (Tha)
76Jean Hugo (Rsa), Paul Streeter, Ben Curtis (USA), Jae-bum Park (Kor), Cameron Percy (Aus), Justin Leonard (USA), Ryuichi Oda (Jpn), K J Choi (Kor)
77Katsumasa Miyamoto (Jpn), Jim Furyk (USA), Anders Hansen (Den), David Duval (USA)
78Tyrrell Hatton, George McNeill (USA), Glen Day (USA)
79Gary Clark, Jerry Kelly (USA), Simon Edwards (USA), Rickie Fowler (USA)
80Victor Dubuisson (Fra), Jose Manuel Lara (Spa)
81Laurie Canter, Ewan Porter (Aus)