Rory McIlroy ties THE PLAYERS record with 10 birdies in opening 65

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – TPC Sawgrass was created to encourage unpredictability, which explains how Rory McIlroy shot 65 despite recent struggles with his swing and two tee shots that ended up in the water on Thursday.

McIlroy rued the state of his iron play in his press conference on the eve of THE PLAYERS, explaining that the swing thought that was working so well for his tee shots was having the opposite effect from the fairway.

“I have this amazing feeling with my woods at the minute,” he said Wednesday, “but when I try to recreate that feeling with the irons, it starts left and goes further left.”

It was a pair of tee shots that cost McIlroy on Thursday, however, but he made up for it by excelling in the one area of the game that days earlier he considered a weakness. He hit 15 greens Thursday, gaining more than three strokes with his approach play, en route to a 65 that had him tied for the lead with Xander Schauffele after the morning wave.

McIlroy’s only over-par holes on Thursday – a bogey on the 18th hole, his ninth of the day, and double-bogey at No. 7 – were the result of wayward tee shots into the water. His 10 birdies tied the tournament record for most in a single round at TPC Sawgrass, though.

McIlroy started the year by finishing first and second in a pair of events in Dubai. He hasn’t been in the top 20 since coming to the States, however. He called last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard a ‘wakeup call’ that showed him his technique was headed in the wrong direction.

Last Saturday, McIlroy charged into contention with a 6-under 30 that tied the scoring record on Bay Hill Club & Lodge’s back nine. He was inside the top 10, and just four shots off Scottie Scheffler’s lead, entering Sunday. McIlroy shot 41 on the front nine of the final round, however, and was never a factor.

Scheffler’s dominant performance made him the unquestioned No. 1 in the world and favorite entering this week. He arrived at TPC Sawgrass not only as the defending champion of THE PLAYERS but also the PGA TOUR’s most recent winner.

McIlroy, on the other hand, was searching, spending extra time on the range to find a feel that would work throughout the bag.

“I needed to clean up the technique a little bit, needed to clean up some things,” McIlroy said in Thursday’s post-round interview. “Honestly, just needed to put the time in. I’ve wanted to play a lot to start this year … but when you play a lot, you don't maybe get the time to practice all that much.”

Instead of resting Monday – which McIlroy said he would’ve done following a strong Sunday at Bay Hill – McIlroy “grinded” on the range.

“It’s sort of already reaping benefits,” he said, “so that’s nice.”

McIlroy’s 65 matched his second-lowest score here in 41 rounds. He shot 64 here en route to a T12 finish in 2016, and also had a 65 in the second round of his 2019 PLAYERS win. But, like many players, his record at TPC Sawgrass is rife with inconsistency. He’s missed the cut six times in 13 appearances and has just one top-10 in his past seven PLAYERS starts.

The variety of TPC Sawgrass’ holes – it requires players to work the ball both ways off the tee and doesn’t give an outsized advantage to long hitters – is one reason. The plethora of penalty areas also means that players are only one swing away from disaster, which McIlroy illustrated Thursday.

He started the day by hitting his first five fairways and first eight greens. He made birdie on six of those holes, putting himself in position for a potentially record-breaking round. McIlroy hooked his tee shot into the water left of the 18th fairway, though. He took a penalty drop, then hit the green from 293 yards and two-putted for an impressive bogey save.

Another left miss on No. 7 went into the water, resulting in a double-bogey. McIlroy said both mishits were the result of tentative swings that he called “guidey.” Debate about where McIlroy should drop on No. 7 led to a lengthy, and at times contentious, debate between McIlroy and his playing partners, Jordan Spieth and Viktor Hovland. Without video evidence to assist the process, determining where the ball last crossed the hazard line was a judgement call left to the players. The task was made more difficult by the fact that McIlroy’s tee shots, and both holes, curve right-to-left.

McIlroy said he was “comfortable” that he took a proper drop in both situations. The impact an improper drop would have on his conscious wouldn’t be worth the slight advantage gained, he added.

“I was pretty sure that my ball had crossed where I was sort of dropping it,” McIlroy said. “It's so hard, right, because there was no TV evidence. I was adamant. But I think, again, (Spieth) was just trying to make sure that I was going to do the right thing.

“If anything, I was being conservative with it. I think at the end of the day we're all trying to protect ourselves, protect the field, as well. I wouldn't say (the debate) was needless. I think he was just trying to make sure that what happened was the right thing.”

McIlroy closed the round by making a 17-foot birdie putt on the par-5 ninth hole. He gained more than three strokes on the greens Thursday, making three putts from 10-15 feet in addition to that birdie putt at his last hole. He didn’t miss a putt from inside 10 feet, as well. This came after an hour-long putting lesson with Brad Faxon after the first round at Bay Hill.

McIlroy is reaping the reward for his labors, and offering a reminder that Scheffler isn’t the only player capable of authoring dominant performances.