Rory McIlroy battling illness and the course at US PGA Championship
- Planet Sport writer
- 19 May 2023
Rory McIlroy fought back from three over par after nine holes to return a 71 in the opening round of the US PGA Championship.
The Northern Irishman is five shots off the clubhouse lead set by Bryson DeChambeau, Adam Scott and Dustin Johnson. Eric Cole is at the top of the leaderboard with five under with four holes to play.
Following a delay of almost two hours due to overnight frost, Oak Hill member McIlroy had started from the 10th hole with five straight pars before badly mishitting his tee shot on the 15th to find a bunker 30 yards short of the pin.
McIlroy hit a good bunker shot to nine feet but was unable to convert the par putt and also failed to get up and down from sand on the 17th, before taking a swipe at the tee marker on the 18th following an errant drive.
The four-time major winner looked certain to drop another shot after firing his third to the second over the green, but holed from 35 feet up a steep slope for an unlikely par and then hit a brilliant tee shot to two feet on the next.
"It was massive," McIlroy said.
"I was sort of just hoping to get down in two and make bogey and go to the third hole at four over par.
"When you walk off the green three over and then you hit a tee shot like that, all of a sudden the pendulum swings or momentum goes the other way and you feel like you're right back in the tournament.
"Depending on what happens over the next three days and what I go on to do, I may look back at that shot as being the sort of turning point of the week."
McIlroy reduced the 617-yard fourth hole to a drive and long iron to set up his second birdie of the day and although he three-putted the next, a birdie on the eighth helped complete a battling round despite being under the weather.
"I'm fighting something," McIlroy confirmed.
"I thought I got a great night's sleep last night and I looked at my Whoop (personal fitness monitor) and I was 22% recovery, and my skin temperature was 3.5 degrees higher than what it's been.
"But I actually feel better today than I felt yesterday, so plenty of water and a bit of rest, I'll be fine."
