S Poddar
Rory Mcllroy’s dream of ending his major drought at The Open quickly turned into a nightmare after a brutal first round at Royal Troon. The Northern Irishman, hungry to erase the memory of his US Open collapse last month, started promisingly, even at par after seven holes.
But then came the unraveling. A double bogey on the iconic Postage Stamp, followed by another double bogey on the 11th after a wayward drive out of bounds, sent Mcllroy’s hopes plummeting. He finished with a disappointing 78.
The stats paint a grim picture. According to analyst Justin Ray, a staggering 87% of Open winners since 1960 were within four shots of the lead after the first round. McIlroy, meanwhile, sits a daunting 13 shots off the lead, facing a battle just to make the cut, let alone contend for the Claret Jug.
“All I can focus on is tomorrow and try to make the cut,” Mcllroy admitted after his round, with a long pause that spoke volumes about his disappointment.
While the weather conditions at Royal Troon were challenging for everyone, Mcllroy seemed particularly affected. “Difficult day,” he conceded. “I felt okay for the first part, even a couple over through nine wasn’t a disaster. But the back nine surprised me with how tough it played. The wind picked up, making things very difficult.”
In stark contrast to Mcllroy’s struggles, his fellow Irishman Shane Lowry shone with a bogey-free 66. But the real shocker came from Englishman Daniel Brown, a relative unknown ranked 272nd in the world, who stole the show with a sensational 65.
Mcllroy now faces a monumental task. Can he overcome this early setback and recapture his form to make a charge up the leaderboard? Only time will tell, but for now, his focus is simply on surviving the cut and keeping his Open dream alive.
