In the rain-soaked Olympia Fields, Rory McIlroy embraced the challenge of playing from the rough, even with trees and a bunker obstructing his path to the 17th green. However, in the BMW Championship on Thursday, even that obstacle didn’t deter him.
Out of his 18 tee shots, McIlroy found the fairway only six times, with three of them being on par 3s. Despite this, his scorecard didn’t reflect the difficulty. He played flawlessly, shooting a 5-under 65, tying him for the lead with Brian Harman, the British Open champion, in the second FedEx Cup playoff event.
“To hit only three fairways today and walk away with a 65 is quite a pleasant surprise,” McIlroy commented.
The rain delay earlier in the day left the greens incredibly soft, prompting McIlroy to realize that it was easier to attack pins from the rough, as the ball wouldn’t spin as much.
“I’m not saying I was intentionally aiming for the rough,” he joked.
However, on the par-4 17th, McIlroy found himself in a challenging position. Although he had only 116 yards left on the 456-yard hole, there were trees blocking his path to the green and a large bunker in front of it.
McIlroy skillfully punched a 7-iron through a gap in the branches, just over the bunker and the green, and then chipped the ball in for a birdie. It was a remarkable shot.
“There were a couple of branches above the window I was aiming for, and I thought, ‘If it hits those, it’s going to drop down near that front left bunker, and I’ll have a decent angle down the green with a 10-footer or less to save par,'” McIlroy explained. “It was a bit of a hit-and-hope moment – either chip it out or take the risk. And it’s only Thursday.”
Harman, coming off his British Open victory, displayed his excitement towards the end of the round. He sank a remarkable 40-foot birdie putt on the par-3 16th, followed by an impressive birdie chip-in on the 17th.
They maintained a one-shot lead over a large group of players at 66, which included Scottie Scheffler, Matt Fitzpatrick, Sahith Theegala, and Rickie Fowler. Each had a promising start for various reasons.
Scheffler endured two consecutive weeks outside the top 20 after going nine months without finishing worse than 12th. Fowler had an opportunity to secure one of the six automatic spots on the U.S. Ryder Cup team by winning.
Both Fitzpatrick and Theegala are aiming to secure a position among the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings after this week, which would grant them a spot in the FedEx Cup finale at East Lake.
Fitzpatrick, currently ranked 40th, needs a strong finish to salvage a disappointing season and qualify for the Tour Championship. Despite defeating Jordan Spieth in a playoff at Hilton Head last year, he has struggled recently, with only one top 10 finish in his last nine starts leading to a drop in his FedEx Cup ranking.
“I’m really pleased,” Fitzpatrick expressed, emphasizing his satisfaction six more times, equaling the number of birdies he made in the opening round.
Theegala sits at No. 31 in the FedEx Cup standings approaching the BMW Championship. He joined the mix by holing out with a 9-iron from the 14th fairway for an eagle.
“It’s impossible to ignore,” Theegala acknowledged the significance of the FedEx Cup standings. “I believe everyone would be dishonest if they claimed not to have at least somewhat of an idea of what it’s going to take to advance to next week.”
Collin Morikawa and Cameron Young were among the players at 67, both striving to improve their chances of making the Ryder Cup team. Jon Rahm, the two-time defending champion Patrick Cantlay, and Spieth finished the day at 68.
Lucas Glover, pursuing his third consecutive victory in as many weeks, shot a 70.
Rahm emerged as the winner at Olympia Fields in 2020, on a course that was exceptionally dry and firm, with 4-under par securing him a spot in a playoff he ultimately won against Dustin Johnson.
This time, the rough was long and wet, while the greens were soft, making distance control challenging, especially with back pin placements. That’s why McIlroy didn’t mind finding himself in the rough – it was an opportunity to unleash his powerful tee shots, showcasing his artistic driving skills.
“A lot of the tee shots, I was being extremely aggressive because I knew deep down that I wouldn’t be heavily penalized for it,” McIlroy shared. “The golf course is certainly not playing the same as it did in 2020. It’s not how I approached it a few years ago here.”
“But hopefully, with some wind and sunshine, the golf course will start to firm up and play closer to my vision of how it should be played,” he added optimistically.
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