Rory McIlroy is part of a five-way tie for the lead after the opening round of the Genesis Scottish Open, with Scottie Scheffler also in contention after a solid start.
McIlroy marked his first start since the US Open by posting a five-under 65 at The Renaissance Club, seeing him share top spot with Patrick Catnlay, Rasmus Hojgaard, Tom Kim and Bernd Wiesberger.
The world No 2 carded an eagle, five birdies and two bogeys during a solid opening day, three years on from winning the event, while Brooks Koepka is among a seven-strong contingent a shot off the pace.
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Highlights of Rory McIlroy’s opening round at the Scottish Open.
Matt Fitzpatrick and Tommy Fleetwood are in the group two back containing home favourite Bob MacIntyre and US Open champion Wyndham Clark, while Scheffler is three behind alongside defending champion Chris Gotterup.
A congested leaderboard sees 71 players separated by just five strokes after the opening round, although PGA Championship winner Aaron Rai posted a one-over 71 and Jon Rahm needed two late birdies to salvage a three-over 73.
McIlroy shows positives on low-scoring opening day
Starting on the back nine, McIlroy bogeyed his opening hole of the day but responded with a two-putt birdie at the par-five 12th ahead of picking up shots at the 14th and 16th.
McIlroy failed to get up and down to save par at the 18th but rolled in an 18-foot eagle at the par-five first, with the six-time major winner missing multiple birdie looks over his second nine before finding back-to-back gains from the seventh.
Rory McIlroy is looking to win the Genesis Scottish Open for a second time
“I felt like I drove the ball particularly well and I started to see that at Shinnecock (US Open), as well,” McIlroy said. “A continuation of putting the ball in play, and then once I do that, I feel like I can attack courses and I can set up scoring opportunities. I did that today.”
Cantlay posted five birdies in a bogey-free round and Weisberger briefly held the solo lead until a penultimate-hole bogey, with Hojgaard also getting to six under before a double-bogey at the par-four 16th halted his progress.
The Dane was the best of the afternoon wave after birdieing the par-three 17th but was unable to find another at the last to regain top spot, with Kim completing the quintet in the lead after carding a five-under 65 earlier in the day.
Clark sits within two of the lead despite carding a double-bogey and bogey in the first four holes, while Scheffler – who will be looking to defend his title at The Open next week – mixed four birdies with two bogeys in his two-under 68.
Scottie Scheffler is chasing a second victory of the season
“I did some good stuff,” Scheffler said. “Wish I could have gotten a few more shots out of it but, overall, I think pretty solid. I like to keep a clean card, so two bogeys hurts and maybe could have played the par-fives a little bit better.”
Who will win the Genesis Scottish Open? Watch throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage continues on Friday from 8.30am on Sky Sports Golf. Get Sky Sports or stream golf with no contract.
When is The Open live on Sky Sports?
Sky Sports is once again the exclusive home of The Open in the UK and Ireland, with over 75 hours of live coverage from across the seven days of tournament week at Royal Birkdale.
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Sir Nick Faldo bumps into Rory McIlroy and asks about his preparations three weeks ahead of The Open. X credit @Sir_NickFaldo
Live coverage begins at 9am for each of the three practice days, before wall-to-wall action from the final men’s major of the year gets under way at 6.30am on Thursday July 16 on Sky Sports Golf.
There will be at least 15 hours of action on both the first two rounds, with bonus feeds available on Sky Sports+ or the Sky Sports App, with extended coverage then starting at 9am on Saturday July 18 and 8am on Sunday July 19.
Who will win The 154th Open? Watch exclusively live from July 16-19 on Sky Sports Golf. Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract.
