Local lads fly SA flag at Glendower but Rory McIlroy lurks

Rory McIlroy, as befits a golfer of his class, gave himself many birdie chances in the first round of the BMW South African Open at Glendower Golf Club on Thursday, but ultimately had to be content with a five-under-par 67 that left him one stroke behind joint leaders Trevor Fisher Jnr and Keith Horne.

McIlroy started his round on the 10^th hole and made pars on the first four holes, before making his move with four successive birdies from the 14^th.

He then moved to five-under-par with a birdie on the par-five second hole, but briefly stumbled with successive bogeys on the fourth and fifth holes, before finishing on five-under with birdies on the par-three sixth and the par-five eighth hole.

“That was good for the first round of the year and I’m quite pleased with how I played. I gave myself a lot of chances, but I was a bit scrappy in the last few holes.

“But I hit a lot of nice shots overall, especially with my irons and I had some very good drives. I just need to eradicate the bad shots,” McIlroy said.

Horne, a 45-year-old veteran of the Sunshine Tour, did not hit many fairways but relied on his irons and a hot putter to post an impressive six-under-par 66.

“That was really enjoyable, even though my practice rounds really didn’t promise much. I hit my irons beautifully and putted well, but I really struggled with my Driver. I only hit four fairways and two of those were on 16 and 18. So I have to improve off the tee-box over the weekend if I’m going to contend,” Horne said after his round, which had seven birdies and just one bogey, on the par-five 15^th.

Fisher Jnr also started on the 10^th and blazed to six-under-par through 10 holes, but then went off the boil for the rest of the front nine, parring his way in to finish with 66.

Also read: Rory McIlroy tails off after good start but he’s still steady

“I found something that worked on my front nine and hit some great shots and my putting went very well. But then on the next nine I had a few bad strikes and didn’t hit too many approaches close, like I did on the first nine. The greens are firming up and you’ve got to hit the ball close and really concentrate on the pace of the putt,” Fisher Jnr said.

The 37-year-old has been through some tough times in Europe over the last year and has decided to make a change to his line-up at address.

“I’ve changed the angle of the face of the club at address because I’ve been hitting a lot of balls left, it’s just a habit I got into over the last couple of years. So now the club feels way open, but I just have to trust what I’m doing. I hit some great shots but made some bad mistakes as well,” Fisher Jnr said.

Another South African, Thomas Aiken, matched McIlroy’s 67 in the morning, thanks to a spectacular finish that saw him birdie his last five holes, from the fifth to the ninth.

“Ernie Els has done an unbelievable job getting Rory to play here and the crowds were fantastic. So you want to put on a show, but unfortunately I just couldn’t get going in the morning, but I managed to close with five birdies so that was a nice way to finish,” Aiken said.

Dean Burmester and Jbe Kruger also shot 67s to make it five South Africans in the top seven, but the first day was a fail as far as defending champion Brandon Stone was concerned.

The 23-year-old was just off his game as he posted a 74, and for him and 2015 champion Andy Sullivan, who struggled to a 78, their future participation in this year’s event will depend on how well they can bounce back in the second round.

Perhaps veteran major champion Nick Faldo can give them some tips on how to do it as he shot an impressive two-under-par 70 to be in the top-30 after the first day, alongside Darren Clarke, while the other big names in the field have work to do to make the cut, Els shooting a 74 and Retief Goosen an 80.

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