Previously at Portrush

With The 153rd Open approaching, over the next four days we will take a round-by-round look at what happened the last time the Championship was staged at Royal Portrush, in 2019 …

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After a 68-year wait The Open arrived back at Royal Portrush – and what followed was one of the most dramatic opening days in recent history.

Fans packed out the course from the moment the gates opened, generating a rousing atmosphere to inspire a drama-filled Thursday as County Antrim embraced the return of golf’s original championship for the first time since 1951.

Within hours of the first tee shot there were some massive stories already unfolding as a home favourite faltered, a record-breaking back nine was entered into the books, and a hole-in-one was celebrated at The Open for the first time in three years.

A special moment to start us off

There was something special in-store for the opening shot of the Championship, and the grandstands were packed out as thousands of spectators showed up to witness it.

Darren Clarke, the Champion Golfer in 2011, grew up in nearby Dungannon and was given the honour of hitting the first shot to get The Open under way.

He spoke afterwards about the emotion he was feeling as he stepped onto the tee, and to a huge ovation he was off to the best possible start, hitting an excellent drive down the 1st fairway.

Clarke went on to birdie the hole and would end up three-under through five to hold an early lead, much to the delight of the local fans – allowing them to find their voice ahead of what was to come.

He eventually finished his round on level-par, while it was another local hero who made many of the headlines on day one.

A day of disappointment for Rory

The Open at Royal Portrush might have been almost seven decades in the making, but eight was the number which summed up Rory McIlroy’s Thursday.

After a rousing welcome on to the 1st tee he hit his drive out of bounds and eventually struggled to a quadruple bogey.

Despite his best efforts he failed to recover throughout the round. A nightmare on Calamity Corner and a triple-bogey on the 18th led to him posting an eight-over par 79.

McIlroy entered the Championship one of the favourites. He’d already won twice in 2019 ahead of The Open and arrived with the Royal Portrush course record of 61 on the old Dunluce course in his back pocket – a record he managed to set aged just 16.

All this meant his first day struggles came as a surprise, and he’d have a huge battle on his hands to recover and push towards the cut line.

Ace moments for Grillo and Fox

In a day loaded with drama one of the biggest cheers came on the 13th hole – Feather Bed.

Emiliano Grillo was two-over when he recorded the first hole-in-one at The Open since 2016. The Argentine enjoyed an eventful opening round which also included a triple-bogey and three birdies, ultimately posting a score of 73.

Another headline came courtesy of Ryan Fox who etched his name into the record books by posting the lowest back nine in Open history.

The New Zealander was three-over through 11 holes before turning on the style, firing six birdies in the final seven holes to post a 29, and finish the first day with a 68.

He would go on to say news of the record came as a nice surprise and that he didn’t even know he was moments away from history as he lined up his final putt.

Big names lurking

Along with McIlroy, Francesco Molinari, Champion Golfer in 2018, also found the going tough. He was four-over through 12 holes and ended up with an opening 74.

However, there were some low scores being posted – and a host of big names lurking within striking distance of first-round leader JB Holmes on six-under.

Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Tommy Fleetwood, Webb Simpson and Sergio Garcia were only a few shots back, and a certain Shane Lowry sat just one off the lead after a superb first-round 67.

Lowry played some excellent golf throughout the day and could have gone even lower than five-under had it not been for some missed opportunities on the back nine. Would he begin converting those chances as we move towards the weekend?