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Irish Independent
5 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Independent
The Open: Rory McIlroy suffers mid-round wobble as Shane Lowry signs off with a 70 at Royal Portrush
live | We'll bring you live updates here across the week Gareth Hanna and Adam McKendry Today at 02:27 It's a massive week in Royal Portrush as the 153rd Open Championship takes place. We will bring you all the action from the course all week as Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry lead the Irish challenge. Key updates Meet the Buddhist monk who's one shot off the lead Pivotal point in Rory's week already? The Open Guinness tracker: Where's the cheapest pint in Portrush this week? Darren Clarke on shooting a 75: 'Maybe I should have spent more time in the Harbour Bar!' Round one tee times 4 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Finally somebody hits five And it's Harris English who breaks clear of that -4 mark to take the solo lead at the Open Championship. After his long-range birdie on 11, he backs it up with four at the 12th. That's the seventh birdie of a round that has featured just two pars. If you want fireworks and to stay away from the Rory madness, hold on for the group behind. Meanwhile, Christian Bezuidenhout pars his way in from the 12th to join the clubhouse lead at -4. A near miss on the 18th green merited a frustrated putter flip. 4 minutes ago Adam McKendry "Go on, go on... OH!" There's the par McIlroy needed! It was almost a birdie, an outstanding chip from the hollow behind the green rolling towards the hole and finishing just short of the pin, with the crowd thinking it might drop. Stops the rot, stays at -1 thru 13. Thomas and Fleetwood also secure pars. 9 minutes ago Gareth Hanna That bogey of Rory's... He's the first person to drop a shot at the 12th since Daniel Berger a few hours ago. 24 players had passed in between and successfully managed par or better. Sigh. 9 minutes ago Adam McKendry McIlroy misery Off the clubface he hates his tee shot on the par-three 13th and for good reason as it pitches just beyond the flag and rolls off the back left of the green, where Tommy Fleetwood finds himself too. Justin Thomas has hit a good one to about 12 feet for birdie but this is all about McIlroy - he needs a par to stop the rot. The cries of "Grand Slam baby!" as he walks to the green likely aren't helping either. 15 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Super six becomes fantastic five Lucas Glover is back out of a tie for the lead after a bogey at 11. The old wayward tee shot + failure to get up and down from off the green combo. 18 minutes ago Adam McKendry Bogey That's a really painful one for Rory. Really painful. He stood on the 11th tee one back of the lead and back to back bogeys, including a three-putt one on a par-five, is a real momentum killer. Back to -1. The crowd feel it too. There was a deflated feeling all round when that missed. 21 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Welcome to cut-watch with Bryson A disaster at the 13th. Hacked out. Poor chip. Missed put. Five. Double. He's not +5 and in a tie for 132nd. 21 minutes ago Adam McKendry Work to do Rory's monster putt had the line but not the length and he's left himself a seven footer for par to avoid a really painful bogey on not just a par five but the easiest hole on the course. That would be a real momentum killer. Even worse for Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood as both of their putts loop invitingly towards the hole but halt just a few rolls short of a birdie. 28 minutes ago Gareth Hanna You don't have to be a lip-reader... Rory's tee shot on the par five 12th ends up in the bunker, where Tommy Fleetwood joins him. Rory pitches out to follow the three-shot route that has paid dividends for him on par fives today. But wherever it ended up, his one-word summary towards the camera was unmistakeable. Ah it rolled down the slope into the semi-rough, making the 137-yard approach more difficult than it should be. And it duly ends up a full 73 feet away from the hole. A two-putt will do from there. 29 minutes ago Gareth Hanna It's not getting any better for Bryson He's still +3 but he's just blasted his tee shot at the par three 13th into the long stuff. 31 minutes ago Adam McKendry Everyone after Rory Around the 12th green, even though Åberg, Hovland and Spieth are putting, the whispers and phones are all about where Rory has hit his drive in the group behind. The answer is into the furthest fairway bunker, which is 310 off the tee. That's going to be a lay up on this par five. 32 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Do you recognise this face? This is Bo Martin, who was on Shane's bag in 2019. He's with Min Woo Lee this year, who is level par through 13. 52 minutes ago Adam McKendry Inches from another new leader Seriously, by the end of the day we could have about ten guys atop this leaderboard. Tyrrell Hatton almost becomes the latest to reach -4 as he hits the 12th green in two and just runs his putt an inch to the right of the hole, but it's a tap-in birdie and he returns to -3 after having bogeyed the 11th. Not a bad bounceback all things considered. 53 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Rory's magic may save par It was a pitch up the middle from that thick lie in the rough and his third-shot approach is superb - from 85 yards to eight feet to save par. If he gets that home, he goes on to the par five 12th knowing a birdie with tie the lead at The Open Championship at Royal Portrush. 56 minutes ago Adam McKendry 'I enjoy playing it': Rickie Fowler, who opened with a two-under 69 His round:"Good day other than a couple swings, missed a couple short ones. Other than that, a good solid start. I think that's really all you can ask for on Thursday." Royal Portrush:"Yeah, I enjoy playing it. I've had success on it back in 2019. It's a tricky golf course, depending on where the wind's at and what kind of weather we have. You have to think your way around it and execute, but also know when you can maybe play on the aggressive side or when you need to kind of play conservative or just stay smart and take what the course gives you." Today 01:35 PM Gareth Hanna The politics of the 11th tee shot Rory's tee shot at 11 doesn't go to plan as it thuds into the thick stuff. Didn't look like it moved once it whacked in there. Left. Obviously. He's been more left than Jeremy Corbyn today. Fleetwood's scuttles just to the right of that (but not quite centrist) and into the semi, while JT loops a conservative fade down the centre-right side and just off the fairway. Today 01:32 PM Adam McKendry One back Here's the putt that got Rory one off the lead. The Open on Twitter / X Rory's making a one off the lead. The Open (@TheOpen) July 17, 2025 Today 01:31 PM Gareth Hanna Quite right, too Nothing as annoying as when the tour pros hit into the stands and drop it just off the green. The R&A did explain earlier this week that the reason for these is so that there's no risk of guys bailing out into stands on purpose. Dylan Dethier on Twitter / X the Open seems to be dialing up its nastiest set of drop zones yet. ohh you want a free drop from the grandstand? for sure man. toss one down in the bushes over there Dylan Dethier (@dylan_dethier) July 16, 2025 Live Blog Software
Belfast Telegraph
5 days ago
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
The Open: Rory McIlroy one off the lead and meet the Buddhist monk who's also in contention
Key updates Meet the Buddhist monk who's one shot off the lead Pivotal point in Rory's week already? The Open Guinness tracker: Where's the cheapest pint in Portrush this week? Darren Clarke on shooting a 75: 'Maybe I should have spent more time in the Harbour Bar!' Round one tee times one minute ago Gareth Hanna Hands across Hadrian's Wall Scot Robert MacIntyre and English Justin Rose are having a nice battle in their group, both under par since the middle of their front nines. It's just gone advantage England as Rose holed for birdie on 11 to go to -2, one clear of MacIntyre who was forced to make a nice recovery for par. Solid. 6 minutes ago BIRDIE! The crowd go wild as this one drops for McIlroy and he's one shot off the lead at -3 after his third birdie in six holes! 9 minutes ago Rory's roring again The approach play over the last few holes in particular has been sublime from McIlroy and he's pulled another rabbit out of the hat on the par-four 10th, chopping it out of the rough to the left of the fairway and using the contours of the green to roll it up to six feet shy of the pin and another birdie chance. It doesn't have to drop but, after the disappointment of the eighth, it would be a very timely one to see go in. 15 minutes ago Gareth Hanna What about the adopted Ulsterman? A huge hit with the fans this week but Bryson DeChambeau hasn't made a single birdie out there today at +3 through 10. A double at four, when he had trouble on the bank, did most of the damage. Also successfully birdie-free is Jordan Spieth in the afternoon's second featured group, and a shot worse off after a front nine 40. Ouch. 20 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Is there a hole there? Three putts, three misses for Rory's group on nine which means par for McIlroy (-2), bogey for Fleetwood (+2) and double for Thomas (E). 'I thought I was going to black out': Estonian amateur Richard Teder, who chipped in in a Play-Off to qualify for the event and shot 74 His nerves over his first tee shot:"A bit crazy on the 1st hole. I thought I was going to black out. I told myself it's another golf shot. It's a 2-iron, my favourite club. The whole day was just unbelievable. The crowds, the fans. It was special." Royal Portrush:"The course is very difficult. If you hit a bad shot, you're not in a good spot. Hit loads of great shots today, just my putter wasn't really working today, which just happens. It's golf, right? But I'm happy about today." Can he make the cut?:"Just try to hang in there, to be honest. Make a lot of pars. Just couldn't make any putts, which 3-over is not that bad for not making anything. I'm happy." 34 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Mixed fortunes at nine Iron off the tee for Rory and it's perfectly 259 yards down the middle, while Fleetwood and JT find the rough either side of the fairway. Rory safely on in two while the other pair can only pitch out short. With his third, JT short-sides himself again and that's a very tough up and down just to save bogey. He could be on his way back to level par. Fleetwood gives himself a chance for par from 15 feet. 34 minutes ago Anybody else want the lead? It's now a SIX-way tie as Lucas Glover, who started birdie-eagle but had done nothing since, has taken advantage of the par-five seventh and he gets to -4 too! Will anybody actually bother to get to -5 or is that as good as it's going to get? There's also a move from France's Romain Langasque, who has picked up three shots in two holes by birdieing the 11th and then eagling the 12th to get to -3! 42 minutes ago Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. Rory misses the birdie putt. Gave it too much break on the right-hand side and the six-footer stays above ground. That would have been the one to light the touch paper. Instead he stays -2 and two back of the leading quintet. Meanwhile, it ended up being a good hole for Justin Thomas as he chips in from short of the green for birdie and he's up to -2! 44 minutes ago You Bez believe it again! We have a five-way tie for the lead as Christiaan Bezuidenhout comes up with the goods on the par-five 12th, hitting the green in two and driving in the 27-foot eagle putt to move to -4! 46 minutes ago Rory. McIlroy. Fresh off nearly holing out for eagle on the seventh, Rory McIlroy nearly does the same thing on the par-four eighth as he follows up a 300-yard drive into the wind with a majestic wedge that carves through the air and lands an inch from the pin! That'll be another short putt for birdie to go one shot off the lead! 49 minutes ago Hot Harris I haven't seen a single shot he has played today, even though he's in the group behind Rory McIlroy and is now tied for the lead, but Harris English moves to four-under-par with his fifth birdie in his opening seven holes! He's even had time to drop a shot and, amazingly, it was on the par-four fifth which is the easiest hole on the course! This has to go down as a psycho scorecard. 54 minutes ago He's in the zone McIlroy. Eighth tee. Pulverised straight down the middle and the tee is out of the ground before the ball has even reached its apex. We're cooking with gas now. 57 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Rory McIlroy - within two Tap in putt secured and the crowd goes up another notch. They feel like it's on! Birdies all round - Fleetwood is having one of those days where every putt is a near miss. And such is the case for his eagle attempt. After 7 McIlroy -2 Thomas -1 Fleetwood +1 57 minutes ago Worth a few Bob Robert MacIntyre is a links specialist and he's proven it once again with back-to-back birdies on the seventh and eighth to move to -3 and one shot off the lead! He's talked in the build-up to this tournament that he loves Royal Portrush - will the course give some love back to him this week? Meanwhile, Tyrrell Hatton is still at -3 after finishing the ninth hole but only after draining a monster putt for par following a chip shot that went too long from right of the green. Those are momentum savers. Today 04:22 PM Gareth Hanna It's getting going out here now Super pitch nipped in and Rory has what looks like a kick in birdie from here. He should pitch out on every hole! The fans are going for it now. That should be him up to -2 and they can sense a march is coming. Eagle attempt up the hill coming for Fleetwood after a super second while JT is just out the back in two. Today 04:14 PM Gareth Hanna Hold up on hole seven A long wait as three groups are all on the par five seventh at once. Never does anybody any good, that. And Rory hits it left. It's thick and lying down with some thick stuff folding in around it. Won't be getting up in two but that did him a favour on the second. Rory lucky enough with the second shot as it takes one hop in the thick stuff and comes back down into the semi rough. He can't see it from where he is and will be pleasantly surprised with that result. Fleetwood and JT are all good off the tee so could go for it in two. Today 04:10 PM Meet the Buddhist monk who's one shot off the lead Sadom Kaewkanjana is 262nd in the world rankings. Sadom Kaewkanjana has never played at a level higher than the Asian Tour. Sadom Kaewkanjana has played in just one event since May and missed the cut in it. Sadom Kaewkanjana is an ordained Buddhist monk. Sadom Kaewkanjana didn't have any luggage until 8pm on Wednesday because it got lost in transit from Thailand. Sadom Kaewkanjana is currently one shot off the lead at The Open Championship after parring the last for a three-under-par 68, the same score as the World No.1. Because golf. Today 03:59 PM Keep your Hatton Tyrrell Hatton, who has finished in the top-10 of a Major twice in the last two years, is threatening again as he has an eagle putt on the par-five seventh to take a share of the lead... no. It stays short but it's a tap-in for birdie and the Englishman makes it another LIV player in the mix as he moves one shot back of the lead trio. All of a sudden the leaderboard is becoming quite bunched, to the extent that -1 is tied-19th. Live Blog Software
Belfast Telegraph
5 days ago
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
The Open: Rory McIlroy hunting down the leaders as crowd sense a charge while Scottie Scheffler goes low on day one
Key updates Pivotal point in Rory's week already? The Open Guinness tracker: Where's the cheapest pint in Portrush this week? Darren Clarke on shooting a 75: 'Maybe I should have spent more time in the Harbour Bar!' Round one tee times 2 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Is there a hole there? Three putts, three misses for Rory's group on nine which means par for McIlroy (-2), bogey for Fleetwood (+2) and double for Thomas (E). 'I thought I was going to black out': Estonian amateur Richard Teder, who chipped in in a Play-Off to qualify for the event and shot 74 His nerves over his first tee shot:"A bit crazy on the 1st hole. I thought I was going to black out. I told myself it's another golf shot. It's a 2-iron, my favourite club. The whole day was just unbelievable. The crowds, the fans. It was special." Royal Portrush:"The course is very difficult. If you hit a bad shot, you're not in a good spot. Hit loads of great shots today, just my putter wasn't really working today, which just happens. It's golf, right? But I'm happy about today." Can he make the cut?:"Just try to hang in there, to be honest. Make a lot of pars. Just couldn't make any putts, which 3-over is not that bad for not making anything. I'm happy." 16 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Mixed fortunes at nine Iron off the tee for Rory and it's perfectly 259 yards down the middle, while Fleetwood and JT find the rough either side of the fairway. Rory safely on in two while the other pair can only pitch out short. With his third, JT short-sides himself again and that's a very tough up and down just to save bogey. He could be on his way back to level par. Fleetwood gives himself a chance for par from 15 feet. 16 minutes ago Anybody else want the lead? It's now a SIX-way tie as Lucas Glover, who started birdie-eagle but had done nothing since, has taken advantage of the par-five seventh and he gets to -4 too! Will anybody actually bother to get to -5 or is that as good as it's going to get? There's also a move from France's Romain Langasque, who has picked up three shots in two holes by birdieing the 11th and then eagling the 12th to get to -3! 24 minutes ago Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. Rory misses the birdie putt. Gave it too much break on the right-hand side and the six-footer stays above ground. That would have been the one to light the touch paper. Instead he stays -2 and two back of the leading quintet. Meanwhile, it ended up being a good hole for Justin Thomas as he chips in from short of the green for birdie and he's up to -2! 26 minutes ago You Bez believe it again! We have a five-way tie for the lead as Christiaan Bezuidenhout comes up with the goods on the par-five 12th, hitting the green in two and driving in the 27-foot eagle putt to move to -4! 28 minutes ago Rory. McIlroy. Fresh off nearly holing out for eagle on the seventh, Rory McIlroy nearly does the same thing on the par-four eighth as he follows up a 300-yard drive into the wind with a majestic wedge that carves through the air and lands an inch from the pin! That'll be another short putt for birdie to go one shot off the lead! 31 minutes ago Hot Harris I haven't seen a single shot he has played today, even though he's in the group behind Rory McIlroy and is now tied for the lead, but Harris English moves to four-under-par with his fifth birdie in his opening seven holes! He's even had time to drop a shot and, amazingly, it was on the par-four fifth which is the easiest hole on the course! This has to go down as a psycho scorecard. 36 minutes ago He's in the zone McIlroy. Eighth tee. Pulverised straight down the middle and the tee is out of the ground before the ball has even reached its apex. We're cooking with gas now. 39 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Rory McIlroy - within two Tap in putt secured and the crowd goes up another notch. They feel like it's on! Birdies all round - Fleetwood is having one of those days where every putt is a near miss. And such is the case for his eagle attempt. After 7 McIlroy -2 Thomas -1 Fleetwood +1 39 minutes ago Worth a few Bob Robert MacIntyre is a links specialist and he's proven it once again with back-to-back birdies on the seventh and eighth to move to -3 and one shot off the lead! He's talked in the build-up to this tournament that he loves Royal Portrush - will the course give some love back to him this week? Meanwhile, Tyrrell Hatton is still at -3 after finishing the ninth hole but only after draining a monster putt for par following a chip shot that went too long from right of the green. Those are momentum savers. 48 minutes ago It's getting going out here now Super pitch nipped in and Rory has what looks like a kick in birdie from here. He should pitch out on every hole! The fans are going for it now. That should be him up to -2 and they can sense a march is coming. Eagle attempt up the hill coming for Fleetwood after a super second while JT is just out the back in two. 55 minutes ago Gareth Hanna Hold up on hole seven A long wait as three groups are all on the par five seventh at once. Never does anybody any good, that. And Rory hits it left. It's thick and lying down with some thick stuff folding in around it. Won't be getting up in two but that did him a favour on the second. Rory lucky enough with the second shot as it takes one hop in the thick stuff and comes back down into the semi rough. He can't see it from where he is and will be pleasantly surprised with that result. Fleetwood and JT are all good off the tee so could go for it in two. 60 minutes ago The joy of The Open Sadom Kaewkanjana is 262nd in the world rankings. Sadom Kaewkanjana has never played at a level higher than the Asian Tour. Sadom Kaewkanjana has played in just one event since May and missed the cut in it. Sadom Kaewkanjana is an ordained Buddhist monk. Sadom Kaewkanjana didn't have any luggage for the early part of the week because it got lost in transit from Thailand. Sadom Kaewkanjana is currently one shot off the lead at The Open Championship after parring the last for a three-under-par 68, the same score as the World No.1. Because golf. Today 03:59 PM Keep your Hatton Tyrrell Hatton, who has finished in the top-10 of a Major twice in the last two years, is threatening again as he has an eagle putt on the par-five seventh to take a share of the lead... no. It stays short but it's a tap-in for birdie and the Englishman makes it another LIV player in the mix as he moves one shot back of the lead trio. All of a sudden the leaderboard is becoming quite bunched, to the extent that -1 is tied-19th. Today 03:57 PM Gareth Hanna Rory had that, you know Par at the par three 6th for McIlroy as his birdie putt stops a foot short. Looked like it was going in if it had been hit. Almost a super two from Fleetwood as his curling putt the length of the green lips out at the back edge after a lovely punched approach. Thomas shortsided himself off the tee - his chip was as good as was possible up the slope but his 20 footer stops short. McIlroy: -1 Thomas: E Fleetwood: +2 Today 03:48 PM Three-way tie at the top Just as soon as Aaron Rai moved up to the top, he's back down into fourth once more as he bogeys the par-four ninth, so he drops back to -3 and Olesen, Li and Fitzpatrick are the leaders again. Harris English, meanwhile, birdies the first, second and fourth to get to -3 thru four. Great start for him, as it is for Maverick McNealy, who has birdied three of his last four holes to reach -3 thru seven. Today 03:47 PM Gareth Hanna ROOOOAARRRYYYY 'It's an unexpected birdie, coming back from a mistake like that.' So says the fan behind me, who should be a commentator, as Rory rails it up the slope and in the middle door. No such luck for Tommy whose bunker trouble has yielded successive bogeys. After 5 it's: McIlroy: -1 Thomas: -1 Fleetwood: +2 Today 03:42 PM Gareth Hanna 'It's no good there - we've been standing three hours waiting' You've got to feel for the fans who think they're in perfect place only for a TV camera to get plonked in front of them. To be fair the fan and the camera man in this case have an amicable discussion and the cameraman pops off again before the group takes to the green. A win for humanity. Live Blog Software
