Despite being 67, Rory McIlroy was disappointed with a poor breakout and slow play

BROOKLINE, Massachusetts – The powerful combination of thick rough, slippery greens and the pressure of the US Open can have a predictable impact on the player.

Think of Rory McIlroy’s Day 1 at The Country Club. He started with the number 10, made a turn at 2 below face value and was shot from the early lead. After winning the RBC Canadian Open last week, he was on cruise control until he was gone when his driver caught the skinny edge of the bunker at the short fifth hole par-4 and stayed there.

Results of the whole field from the US Open

The 2011 US Open champion only managed to move his next shot to another bunker, and he unleashed his disappointment on the sand in a moment of anger.

“You will encounter things at the US Open, whether they are lies or similar things that you just don’t see in another week. It’s hard not to be disappointed, “McIlroy said. “I’m going up and back to the bunker. The thickest unevenness on the track is around the edges of the bunkers. I kind of cursed USGA when I went to the ball. “

McIlroy struck his third shot 10 feet past the hole and maintained his momentum, making the steam shot on his way to the starting 67, one shy of 18-hole leader Adam Hadwin. Learning to cope and skipping bad breaks is part of the big championship, he explained.

“You just have to accept it,” said McIlroy, who was also caught on camera throwing his bat after a bad approach fired into the ninth hole. “I hit the sand a few times because I had already messed it up, so it wasn’t like much more work for [caddie Harry Diamond]and then I just reset and played a decent bunker shot, and then it was really nice to fail that shot. ”

McIlroy overcomes bad breakthroughs, makes impressive steam

McIlroy also suggested that the pace of the game – especially the group in front of him, including Scott Stallings, Davis Riley and Victor Perez – did not help his mood.

“The boys in front of us were playing so slowly. They were like a hole or a hole and a half behind the group in front of them, “he said. “It was also a little disappointing.”