Rory
McIlroy has kept his mobile phone switched off and given his laptop
away. 'It's like I have been living in the seventies these last few
days,' he said.
In his first round since his bombshell split from his fiancee Caroline
Wozniacki, he kept the surprises coming by shooting in the sixties - a
four under par 68 to be precise in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth
on Thursday.
Boost: Rory McIlroy celebrates chipping in for an eagle during first round of the BMW PGA Championship
Lift: McIlroy is congratulated by Ernie Els after holing his second shot on the seventh hole for an eagle
WOZNIACKI WOE
Caroline
Wozniacki will head into French Open action nursing a broken heart and a
dodgy left knee. Rory McIlroy’s ex-fiancee has had knee trouble for a
while.
She tweeted: ‘It’s a hard time for me right now. Thanks for all the sweet messages! Happy I support Liverpool right now because I know I’ll never walk alone.’
She tweeted: ‘It’s a hard time for me right now. Thanks for all the sweet messages! Happy I support Liverpool right now because I know I’ll never walk alone.’
'Everyone
know what it feels like,' said the 25 year old. 'It's tough. You're not
sleeping and I'm not comfortable standing here talking about it. But
the object now is to bury my head in my golf and for the most part I did
a pretty good job of that.'
He
certainly did, from the moment he had stood in the middle of the
seventh fairway with his arms aloft and his face bathed in smiles.
Amazing what a holed wedge shot from 130 yards for an eagle two can do
to lift the spirits of a man.
Centre of attention: All eyes were on Rory McIlroy at Wentworth after he split up from Caroline Wozniacki
One to watch: Spectators surrounded the third green to get a look at McIlroy in his opening round
'Wear black for Mac' was the theme of the opening day – the players
were paying their respects to the popular caddie Iain McGregor, who died
doing the job he loved in Madeira recently – and suddenly, the
predominant mood of this particular Mac was anything but black.
How
he seized on that enormous slice of good fortune. His approach had
actually pitched 35ft beyond the flag before spinning back into the
hole.
Five
holes later he almost came up with an even more spectacular blow, as
his five iron approach from 203 yards to the par five 12th finished
three inches away. It was certainly a much better shot.
'I've
not had an albatoss,' he said. 'It would have been nice if it had gone
in, since it's the one thing in golf my dad still has on me. He's had
one.'
Those
two eagles took McIlroy to four under and on the leaderboard. He might
be struggling with commitment off the course but there was no doubting
his commitment to capitalise and return a morale-boosting score.
Out in front: Thomas Bjorn leads the tournament after shooting a stunning 62 in his first round
Pin-point accuracy: This approach to the 18th set up a birdie for Bjorn - the eighth of a stunning opening round
Thomas reigns in the rain: The umbrellas were up as Bjorn holed out to complete his first round
After
all his problems here since the controversial changes were instigated
in 2010 – he's not finished in the top 20 since – wouldn't it be ironic
if this was the year he won the European tour's flagship event? Not
that he's thinking that way just yet, of course. 'My golf is good enough
but right now I' d still be happy simply being around for the weekend,'
he said.
A
sense of black humour was needed at the start. Itching for the relative
quiet of a round inside the ropes, what happened when he got the hoopla
of the opening hole out of the way? The siren blew heralding a
suspension of play owing to some electrical activity in the area.
The
heavy showers that punctuated the day's proceedings actually helped
McIlroy when he got back out, softening the greens and turning it into a
target golf test. No-one prospered quite like Europe's renaissance man,
Bjorn.
In
a game where perfection isn't possible it's hardly surprising players
invariably finish even great rounds thinking it could still have been
one or two shots better. Not Bjorn on this day.
This was the 1,421st round of his long and distinguished European Tour career, and he had no trouble ranking it.
'It's the best one,' he said. 'Absolutely. To shoot 62 on this golf course, you couldn't ask for more.'
Wet and wild: The rain hammered down at Wentworth as play was suspended twice
Ruled out: Sergio Garcia has been forced to withdraw from the tournament with a knee injury after an opening round of 73
Yet
Bjorn had started out with low expectations. The Dane played horribly
in Spain last week and admitted his patience was fraying at the edges
when he continued to struggle in practice here. To complete the picture,
his pitiful record at Wentworth showed just one top ten in 16 previous
appearances.
How
to explain what happened next, as one of the great ball strikers of the
last 20 years gave a consummate demonstration of his class? 'I don't
really know where to start,' he said. 'With my record here and after
last week, I certainly didn't come here thinking, oh this is going to be
a great week. I guess I've got to stick my head down now and focus on
what lies ahead.'
What
lies ahead is the prospect of removing any lingering uncertainty
regarding his Ryder Cup place, although there's not much of that given
he lies third in the qualifying table. He can also consolidate his
position as leader in the Race to Dubai.
After
a couple of lean years, why is it all going right again for the 43 year
old? 'Hard work and determination not to let a golf career fade away,'
he said. 'You get to that stage in your life where you can see the end
and you've got to make decisions. It didn't take me long to decide I
wanted to enjoy this last bit, and I'll continue to work hard and enjoy
it for as long as my body allows.'
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