Rory McIlroy in good shape on -3 after first round of Valero Texas Open

Rory McIlroy played his opening round with Tommy Fleetwood and Rickie Fowler. McIlroy rolled in a short-range birdie putt at the second hole to reach -1. Three-time FedEx Cup champion missed the fairway at five but managed to hole his par putt to remain -1. McIlroy advanced to -2 due to his ball dropping into the hole before 10 seconds.

McIlroy’s weak iron play continued as his second shot at 11 & 12 missed the green but managed to escape both holes with a par. Northern Irishman failed to take advantage of the par five 14th and had to settle for a disappointing par. McIlroy’s birdie drought came to an end at 17 and moved up the leaderboard to -3. McIlroy missed the fairway at 18 but nearly chipped in for birdie. The Northern Irishman finished with a par and signed for an opening -3 round of 69.