Rory McIlroy off to a frustrating start in Tour Championship

If there was one saving grace for Rory McIlroy – who shot a one-under-par 69 – as he endured a rather frustrating opening round of the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, it was that nobody galloped clear in the race to claim the tournament title or even bigger alternative prize, the $10 million bonus that awaits the winner of the FedEx Cup playoffs.

Billy Horschel, winner of last week's BMW and runner-up in the previous week's Deutsche Bank championship, continued his rich vein of form with a 66, four-under-par, that gave him a share of the lead with fellow American Chris Kirk, winner of the Deutsche Bank.

Although overlooked by US captain Tom Watson for Ryder Cup picks, Horschel and Kirk have been able to stay focused on the FedEx Cup and maintained their recent form. The pair were the only two players to go bogey-free in the first round.

“It was a grind, it feels like every day the last couple of weeks has been a grind,” said McIlroy, who finished three shots adrift. “Just getting up and trying to give 100 per cent out on the golf course. It seemed like any time I made a step forward, I seemed to get knocked back on the next hole. I kept the round together well on the back nine.”

McIlroy had an erratic front nine that featured three birdies and two bogeys. His first birdie of the round came on the third, where he hit an approach from 140 yards inside 12 inches for a tap-in. However, McIlroy then followed with a bogey on the fourth. A similar trend continued with a birdie on the sixth – where he hit his tee shot over water on the 208 yards Par 3 to eight feet – only to follow with a bogey on the seventh.

Dip under par

McIlroy managed his third birdie of the round on the eighth, where he holed a left-to-right sliding putt from 10 feet but, three holes later, on the 11th he gave the shot back to return to level par on his round and had to wait until the 17th to again dip under par.

“I feel like with the year I have had to date, I really want to finish it off well. Even though this wasn’t the best day (on the course), I still shot under par and I am still in the golf tournament. There’s a bit motivation to finish the season well.”

There were signs of fatigue in McIlroy’s game over the weekend of last week’s BMW Championship in Denver, where had had back-to-back four putts on the 12th green. The 25-year-old subsequently had a change in plan, returning to his home in Florida to practice before heading up to Atlanta, and he claimed to be fresh again in his pursuit of the FedEx Cup.

Prior to his first round, McIlroy explained: “Anything other than a win here would be a disappointment . . . after I finished the PGA, all my focus was on the FedExCup and trying to win this. So anything other than a win this week, if that means that obviously if I finish second or third and end up winning the whole thing, then that’s cool as well. I mean, I want to win. I only have to beat 28 other guys. It’s not like a regular field where you have to beat 155.”

He may have fewer players than in a normal tournament to beat, but McIlroy was left playing catch-up on many of them on a day when a blustery wind made for a tricky opening round. McIlroy showed his fortitude with par saves on the 16th and 18th holes, sandwiching that birdie on the 17th in between to stay in touch.

Patrick Reed, who has had a tough time of things on the golf course in the past two events, bounced back with a 67 where the difference was his ability to find greens in regulation. At the BMW a week ago, Reed hit only five of 18 greens in regulation in the first round. Yesterday, he found 13 of 18 and the result was a move into contention.

With the prospect of poor weather in the Atlanta area, the PGA Tour has decided to move forward the tee times for the second round by three hours.