Rory McIlroy was among the early starters at The Renaissance Club and the world number two put his recent links golf practice to good use in a five-under 67 that gave him a share of the lead as the afternoon starters were beginning their assault.
Despite a heavy-handed approach and then a light-handed chip that failed to reach the putting surface leading to bogey on the first – the 10th – the 2023 winner made it to the turn at one-under after three birdies and a bogey in the eight holes that followed.
The highlight of the day came on the first where, having split the par-5 fairway, he sent a towering, 250-yard 4-iron to the heart of the green and then rolled his eagle putt in the centre.
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That took him to -3, and two more birdies followed, the first coming at the par-5 seventh and he followed that with another on the par-4 eighth to grab a share of the lead alongside Bernd Wiesberger, Patrick Cantlay and Tom Kim.
Speaking afterwards, he highlighted his par-5 play and his driving as being the keys to his strong opening effort.
“Yeah, I thought for the most part, I played well,” he said. “I felt like I drove the ball particularly well, and I started to see that at Shinnecock, as well, a couple weeks ago. A continuation of putting the ball in play, and then once I do that, I feel like I can attack courses and I can setup scoring opportunities. I did that today. I played the par-5s well. I think I hit all three greens in regulation. You know, one putt dropped for eagle and two two-putt birdies. That always helps the card.
“Overall, good to get my first round of competitive golf on a links golf course, and it’s obviously a great start to the tournament.”
Having won at The Renaissance Club in 2023, finished fourth in ’24 and been runner-up last year, the golf course is clearly one that he’s grown much more fond of and familiar with, but when asked to pinpoint one specific thing that suits his eye, he struggled to come up with an answer.
“I don’t think so,” he replied. “I mean, the one thing I do like is the framing of the holes. I like the — I’ve always liked that on links courses, whether it be the bunkers or the long rough and all that stuff.
“So I think when you frame a golf ball well, it helps the player see a shot a little bit easier. So that helps. But no, it’s sometimes nice to get back to greens that you feel are familiar in terms of like the speed and what you grew up with, and sometimes that can help, too.”
This is just his 13th start of 2026 and his fifth since successfully defending his Masters title at Augusta National, and he admitted that he believes that the lighter playing schedule has been beneficial in terms of keeping his enthusiasm levels up after almost two full decades on tour.
And the galleries in Europe play their part too.
“Yeah, I would say I’ve ebbed and flowed over the course of my career between, like, wanting to play more in Europe and maybe wanting to play less at times,” he said. “But I think now at this stage of my career, I really enjoy coming back here to play. It reminds me of why I started to play the game in the first place; links golf courses and the crowds are incredible, and the crowds next week at The Open will be amazing, as well. I think all of that, it’s — I don’t want to say reminiscent of when I was growing up, but it’s a comfortable environment for me to play in.”
While McIlroy was more than satisfied with his opening effort, the same can’t be said for Shane Lowry or Pádraig Harrington.
Lowry was going along nicely and reached the eighth tee – his 16th – at -2, but a bogey-double bogey finish dropped him back to +1. Harrington, coming off the back of a successful defence of his U.S. Senior Open title in Ohio, can be forgiven for being a little jet-lagged and out of sorts. He made four bogeys in a four-over 76 and will need something special on Friday if he’s to have a weekend tee time.
Tom McKibbin is out in the afternoon wave, as is world number one Scottie Scheffler, Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Fitzpatrick, Ludvig Åberg and Race to Dubai leader, Patrick Reed.
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