IRISH TRIO OFF TO THE RIGHT STARTS

THE first round of The Open is about getting off to the right start and that is never truer than at Portrush.

- BY MICHAEL SCULLY

Padraig Harrington hesitated about taking on the ceremonial duty of hitting the first tee shot because of the dangers therein.

With out of bounds on both sides of the fairway, there were 21 double bogeys or worse on the first hole when The Open was held on the Dunluce links in 2019.

Mcllroy’s opening shot back then, the one that veered left and over the white stakes on his way to a quadruple bogey, has been in the minds of the pros this week.

Thankfully for the thousands who lined the fairways and green and packed into the grandstand behind the tee, the Holywood star fired his opening salvo into light rough on the left side this time.

“I think Rory's made that tee shot a lot scarier," grinned Tom McKibbin, who played alongside Harrington and carded a one-over par 72. "That's all I could probably think about for the last three days!