(North Berwick) Rory McIlroy took a step in the right direction after a final-round collapse at the U.S. Open on Thursday, shooting a 5-under 65 to move three shots off the lead after the first round of the Scottish Open.
American Justin Thomas made his mark with a 62 to take the lead in the final warm-up tournament before the British Open, one shot ahead of South Korea’s Sungjae Im.
Germany’s Maximilian Kieffer and China’s Haotong Li followed at 64 (minus-6).
McIlroy notably sank an approach shot into the back of the cup on the par-5 third hole for an eagle, which put some balm on his many missed birdie chances on the back nine. The Northern Irishman is the defending champion of the tournament, and he dreams of winning it to set the stage for the conquest of the British Open at Royal Troon next week.
For his part, Kieffer was flawless until he slammed a tee shot into a fairway bunker on the final hole, causing his only bogey of the round.
Li played with him and chained eight birdies. He conceded a stroke at par on the 18the green, after an approach shot has passed from the long grass to the right of the hole to that to the left of it.
Others one shot behind include Canadian Corey Conners, John Deere Classic champion Davis Thompson, Tommy Fleetwood and Alex Noren.
Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., trailed by one shot after shooting a 66. Fellow Canadian Nick Taylor was at 4 under after 15 holes, while Adam Hadwin and Aaron Cockerill shot 69 and 71, respectively.
The playing conditions were so mild that the lowest score among golfers who tee off in the morning was 74.
With The Canadian Press