These double-bogeys. These pesky double bogeys.
Mockingly, Rory McIlroy carded simply the second opening spherical of his Masters profession that didn’t characteristic a traditional bogey, which makes the disastrous flip of occasions on holes 15 and 17 even harder to swallow.
The Northern Irishman negotiated Amen Nook so effectively. The group swelled and cheered his each footstep as he sensibly parred holes 11 and 12 with arrowed low irons to the fats elements of every inexperienced, adopted by a birdie as easy as they arrive on the par-5 thirteenth, regardless of the painstaking tempo of play which required him to attend on almost each shot on this nook of the golf course.
McIlroy was 4-under in the midst of the fifteenth fairway and surging to his first sub-70 rating on day one of many Masters since 2018 and simply his third since his 2009 debut down Magnolia Lane. It was a pleasure to observe who all of us assume is a Inexperienced Jacket owner-elect.
However as his jaded, heartbroken followers have change into accustomed to, to not point out the person himself, McIlroy completed with a level-par 72. Sadly, that is what the most well-liked participant within the sport does at Augusta Nationwide on day one, and with every involved look and putt that rolls over the lip, the key grand slam feels inches farther from his grasp. That is his eleventh try at successful all 4 main trophies.
His strategy via the fifteenth inexperienced was pretty inconspicuous, however the crowds’ eyes didn’t depart his ball after his comeback chip rolled, and rolled, and rolled into the drink. A 7 it was. He three-putted the par-4 seventeenth gap for a 6. His gleaming pink quantity on the white Masters leaderboard grew to become a inexperienced 0 (degree) in a black puff of smoke.
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Rory McIlroy first spherical Masters: The stats behind the 72
Primarily based on his profession on the Masters, McIlroy’s 72 ought to come as a shock to nobody. Since he got here tied for twentieth on his debut in 2009, his first-round common is 71.7. He has solely damaged 70 twice, and he has solely damaged par twice since 2017.
Lengthy has been the trope that McIlroy can’t put himself in rivalry down Magnolia Lane from the beginning, and the numbers assist this, much more so in comparison with the World No.1 and McIlroy’s primary market rival, Scottie Scheffler. Scheffler had made 5 earlier begins at Augusta earlier than 2025 and broke 70 thrice – he’s a two-time Inexperienced Jacket winner, and on day one in 2025, he shot a 68.
Ludvig Aberg has already acquired one much less sub-70 opener at Augusta than McIlroy, and he has performed on the Masters twice.
Earlier than McIlroy began his spherical with Ryder Cup teammate Aberg and Akshay Bhatia, he averaged simply over three bogeys per opening spherical on the Masters and, since 2019, he’s 6-over-par on day one. He had solely made two double-bogeys within the first spherical of the April showpiece earlier than this 12 months too – he doubled this tally this 12 months to fall seven pictures behind the excellent Justin Rose, who leads for the fifth time after 18 holes at this occasion with a 7-under 65.
All of this negativity is positioned in distinction to the overwhelming promise of McIlroy’s first 9 holes. He made the flip in 3-under with birdies on holes 3, 8 and 9 which, in accordance with stats guru Justin Ray, was his greatest first-nine rating of a gap spherical on the Masters since 2011, when he led by 4 pictures after 54 holes.
In his earlier 10 first nines, he was a mixed 4-over. There may be a number of pictures and moments the four-time main champion seems again on with remorse throughout his time on this a part of Georgia, however certainly these blemishes on his in any other case spotless scorecard that scorching Thursday afternoon of the 89th Masters will bug him as a lot as another.
McIlroy didn’t converse to the media after the primary spherical. What’s in McIlroy’s favour, and with no disrespect to former US Open champion Rose, is he’s solely 4 pictures behind Scheffler – the principle hunter within the pack.
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