NEWSRORY McILROY hit a hole-in-one in the pro-am at this week's Malaysian Open at Kota Permai Golf and Country Club, near Kuala Lumpur, yesterday.

McIlroy put together a solid round and his hole-in-one came at the fourth. "It was my fifth 'ace', but I have not had one since I was 12 - so I have been waiting six years," said the Ulsterman, who holed out from 168 yards with a seven iron.

"I shot 63, so played nicely. It was a good day all round, and the course is in nice condition . . . It is a very old-fashioned, traditional lay-out, and the greens are great," he said. "The rain has helped soften it up, and the greens are rolling great."