PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland – Royal Portrush shook when Rory McIlroy was announced on the first tee Thursday at the 148th Open.
The crowd was shocked by the time he finished the hole.
McIlroy, a native of Northern Ireland who grew up playing the Portrush links, pulled his tee shot – with an iron in hand – out of bounds on the par-4 first. He took his penalty, re-teed and found the left rough with his third shot. Things didn't get better as his fourth shot finished in an unplayable lie farther down the left side. He took a drop and played his sixth shot onto the green.