Golf:While he may not have played himself out of the tournament, it was a case of what might have been for Rory McIlroy as the Memorial Tournament got under way at Muirfield Village yesterday.
Back on the PGA Tour after a short break at home in Co Down, the 21-year-old will resume this afternoon on level par but will have reflected overnight on a round that could, and indeed should, have been in the 60s.
That most of his travails would come on par fives, where the big-hitter would normally expect to pick up shots, will have been particularly galling.
With the course softened up after a two-hour rain delay in the morning, McIlroy set about making the most of the benign conditions and reached the 11th tee, a 560-yard par five, on two under.
But a wayward drive into the trees led to a penalty drop, and by the time he walked off the green he would have an ugly seven on the card.
The next par five proved just as costly. Having notched a birdie at the 14th, McIlroy attempted to reach the green in two at the next. While fortune often favours the brave, on this occasion it deserted him and his approach found the stream adjacent to the green.
A poor chip into a greenside bunker compounded matters and another double bogey went on the card.
Back-to-back birdies followed immediately, but a closing bogey left McIlroy well down the field.
His round of 72 was seven adrift of clubhouse leaders Justin Rose, Rickie Fowler and Geoff Ogilvy.
Rose, who is still seeking his first victory on the PGA Tour, bogeyed his opening hole and made his move late with five birdies in a sizzling six-hole stretch for a seven-under-par 65.
"It's a bit of a pun, but I putted scary good with my new Ghost putter," said Rose, who has won five times internationally. "I just kept plugging away and then a few putts started dropping and you find your rhythm."
The Englishman clearly enjoys the venue and was runner-up at the Dublin, Ohio, layout in 2008.
“You always hear guys saying a course fits my eye,” he added. “It certainly does here. I like all the tee-shots, and the greens are so pure here that, if you do get a putting stroke going, you’re going to make some putts.
Among the chasing pack was Masters champion Phil Mickelson, who seems to be reserving his best form for tournaments with Tiger Woods in the field.
The left hander, who can replace Woods as world number one with a victory this week, opened with a flawless 67 to join a group on five under.
“I think it’s a course where, if you’re patient, you can make a lot of birdies,” Mickelson said. “You can hit it at a bunch of pins, and the greens are so good that you can make the putt.”
Woods, however, was unable to take advantage of the conditions as the world number one shot a 72 that did not include a single birdie at any of the four par-fives that he usually feasts on.
Ogilvy looked set to enjoy sole possession of the lead after eight birdies through 16 holes, but he missed a putt from inside three feet on his penultimate hole. It was such a short putt that the Australian did not bother to mark or clean the ball before his attempt.
"I thought it was just a real straightforward tap-in and I missed it," said Ogilvy. "You do it a couple of times a year, and that was one of them."
Fowler was proficient with the short stick as the American drained six birdies and also had an eagle on the par-5 seventh to help offset a lone bogey.
Former world number one Vijay Singh, who earlier this week accepted a special exemption for this month's US Open Championship at Pebble Beach, shot a one-under-par 71 in a round that included a double-bogey, a bogey and four birdies.