Rory McIlroy fired a six-under par 64 in the first round of the BMW Championship on August 20 to join a five-way tie for the lead. The tournament, part of the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup playoffs, is played at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis, Missouri [1, 2, 3, 4].
McIlroy’s co-leaders at six under were Americans Gary Woodland, Wyndham Clark, JJ Spaun, and Chris Gotterup. Woodland described his putting, saying, "I was just trying to get it past the hole. It’s a little bit elevated so we couldn’t see it go in. I knew I hit it nice, but when you see the crowd jump up, that was definitely a bonus" [1, 2, 3, 4].
McIlroy credited his recent work with swing coach Michael Bannon and caddie Harry Diamond for his improved form. "I felt at least like I got myself back going in the right direction, and what I wanted to do with my swing," McIlroy said, adding, "It’s certainly a work in progress. Days like this are encouraging, obviously. There’s still a lot of work to be done" [1, 2, 3]. He also noted the course suited his game, saying, "It’s my style of golf course. I do well on these golf courses, they’re big, they’re long. You can get away with missing some tee shots at times" [2].
McIlroy had struggled the previous week at the St. Jude Championship in Memphis, finishing 66th. His strong start at Bellerive showed a turnaround after that disappointing performance [1, 2, 3, 4].
World number one and defending BMW Champion Scottie Scheffler shot a two-over 72 on the opening day, dropping him to a tie for 44th after five bogeys [1, 2, 3, 4].
After the third round on August 22, Wyndham Clark took the outright lead at 17 under par following a five-under 65, while McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay were tied for second at 12 under. McIlroy birdied four of the last six holes in his 65 to close the gap [5].
Robert MacIntyre withdrew from the previous week's St. Jude Championship after a poor first round but posted two under in the first round at BMW [1].
The BMW Championship continues through the weekend, with players competing for FedEx Cup points and positioning. The final round is scheduled for August 23.
