Rory McIlroy made an excellent start in his pursuit of an extended overdue fifth major title with a bogey-free opening spherical at the US Open taking him right into a tie for the lead at 5 below.
Chasing a primary major since his 2014 PGA Championship success, the 35-year-old carded two of his 5 birdies within the last three holes to see him tie the match the early clubhouse goal set by Patrick Cantlay.
It equals McIlroy’s best-ever start to the US Open, matching the 65s he carded on his solution to victory in 2011 and his second-place end final yr.
“It’s nice to see your name at the top of the leaderboard after the first day of a US Open,” McIlroy informed Sky Sports.
“I felt like I performed a very stable, managed spherical of golf… I simply stayed disciplined and after I acquired myself in hassle, I took my medication, two-putted.
“This is the whole thing about a US Open, it’s trying to keep clean scorecards like this. I’m pretty sure I’m not going to keep it bogey-free for the rest of the week… but it’s not about how many birdies you make, it’s about how many bogeys you don’t make.”
“I had a run of pars from the 11th through to 15th where I had chances and wasn’t able to convert. But I feel like the patience I showed over those five holes was rewarded with two birdies in the last three – a great way to finish.”
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Rory McIlroy birdied the ultimate gap at Pinehurst No 2 throughout his opening spherical to tie the lead with Patrick Cantlay within the US Open.
His spherical on Thursday was McIlroy’s second bogey-free start to a US Open since his wire-to-wire win in 2011.
In truth, on the final three situations the place McIlroy has been blemish-free to start a major – the 2011 US Open, 2012 PGA Championship and 2014 Open – he has ended the week victorious on all three events.
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“I went through a run for a while where my starts at major championships weren’t very good,” he informed reporters after his opening spherical.
“I probably got myself a little too worked up at the start of the week.
“But again to the (US) PGA, I opened with a 5 below there at Valhalla. Even going all the best way again to this event final yr, I opened with a low one.
“Certainly the major championships that I’ve won or the ones that I’ve played well at, I’ve always seemed to get off to a good start, and it’s nice to get off to another one.”
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Rory McIlroy shot a powerful five-under-par 65 to tie the clubhouse lead at Pinehurst No 2 at the US Open.
Analysis: Can McIlroy break major drought after quick start?
Dame Laura Davies, four-time major champion: “He’s had a good run recently, he’s had a couple of wins, but has just gone toe-to-toe with the world’s top two.
Rory McIlroy performed alongside Scottie Scheffler, who’s six photographs off the early lead
“They’re the ones that are playing the best golf – Scheffler in the last couple of years and Schauffele with his major – but McIlroy turned up today, he was the man, and beat them quite easily.”
Paul McGinley, former Ryder Cup captain: “That’s a superb start from him and he is proper within the hunt from the get-go! He will need three extra days of that. He was centered, he minimised his errors and he executed properly with good placing.
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Rory McIlroy chipped in on the par 5 fifth gap at Pinehurst No 2 throughout the first spherical of the US Open.
“That’s a tremendous day. If he keeps that intensity and focus for three more days, then he might finally break that 10-year duck.
Rich Beem, 2002 PGA Championship winner: “He has acquired off to such sluggish begins up to now few years, so it is good to see him come out stuffed with vitality, enjoying nice and with every part spot on. That was nice enjoyable to look at and I’m certain he is simply smiling from ear lobe to ear lobe.”
Who will win the third males’s major of the yr? Watch the US Open dwell on Sky Sports. Live protection of the second spherical begins on Friday from 12.30pm on Sky Sports Golf. Stream the US Open and extra with NOW.