BMW PGA Championship R1: McIlroy falters as Rahm suffers disaster start at Wentworth
Jon Rahm had a day to forget on day one of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
Rory McIlroy squandered an early advantage with a late stumble while Jon Rahm endured a disastrous opening round at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
McIlroy, chasing a second title at the Surrey venue, was 5-under par after 10 holes on the West Course and briefly moved into the outright lead after a blistering start.
But his challenge faded on the closing stretch as three bogeys in his final six holes, including a costly mistake at the 8th, left him with a 3-under 69.
The Northern Irishman was the overwhelming pre-tournament favourite and raised expectations even further after shooting a 12-under 60 in the pro-am on Wendesday.
Pos. | Player | Score |
T1 | Aaron Rai | -6 |
T1 | Joakim Lagergren | -6 |
T3 | Adam Scott | -5 |
T3 | Ludvig Aaberg | -5 |
T3 | Ignacio Elvira | -5 |
T3 | Ryan Gerard | -5 |
T7 | Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen | -4 |
T7 | Freddy Schott | -4 |
T7 | Nicolai von Dellingshausen | -4 |
T7 | Johannes Veerman | -4 |
T7 | Robert MacIntyre | -4 |
T7 | Antoine Rozner | -4 |
T7 | Filippo Celli | -4 |
T7 | Patrick Reed | -4 |
T7 | Viktor Hovland | -4 |
T7 | Ryan Fox | -4 |
T7 | Davis Bryant | -4 |
T7 | Thomas Detry | -4 |
T19 | Manuel Elvira | -3 |
T19 | Ricardo Gouveia | -3 |
T19 | David Law | -3 |
T19 | Andy Sullivan | -3 |
T19 | Ewen Ferguson | -3 |
T19 | Joseph Dean | -3 |
T19 | Alejandro Del Rey | -3 |
T19 | Frederic Lacroix | -3 |
T19 | Marcus Helligkilde | -3 |
T19 | Ross Fisher | -3 |
T19 | Rory McIlroy | -3 |
T19 | Jacques Kruyswijk | -3 |
T19 | Niklas Lemke | -3 |
T19 | Joel Girrbach | -3 |
T19 | Sean Crocker | -3 |
T34 | J. J. Spaun | -2 |
T34 | Kota Kaneko | -2 |
T34 | Alex Smalley | -2 |
T34 | Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra | -2 |
T34 | Marcus Armitage | -2 |
T34 | Matthew Jordan | -2 |
T34 | Kazuma Kobori | -2 |
T34 | Guido Migliozzi | -2 |
T34 | Adrian Otaegui | -2 |
T34 | Jorge Campillo | -2 |
T34 | Jens Dantorp | -2 |
T34 | Kiradech Aphibarnrat | -2 |
T34 | Tyrrell Hatton | -2 |
T34 | Jung-Hwan Lee | -2 |
T34 | Jayden Schaper | -2 |
T34 | Angel Ayora | -2 |
T34 | Joost Luiten | -2 |
T34 | Mikael Lindberg | -2 |
T34 | Marcus Kinhult | -2 |
T34 | Brandon Robinson-Thompson | -2 |
T34 | Ben Schmidt | -2 |
T34 | Jeong-Weon Ko | -2 |
T56 | Nicolai Hoejgaard | -1 |
T56 | Jordan Smith | -1 |
T56 | Danny Willett | -1 |
T56 | Sepp Straka | -1 |
T56 | Alexander Noren | -1 |
T56 | Jeff Winther | -1 |
T56 | Joaquin Niemann | -1 |
T56 | Francesco Molinari | -1 |
T56 | Adrien Saddier | -1 |
T56 | Daniel Hillier | -1 |
T56 | Matt Wallace | -1 |
T56 | David Micheluzzi | -1 |
T56 | Paul Waring | -1 |
T56 | Richard Mansell | -1 |
T56 | Richard Sterne | -1 |
T56 | Kristoffer Reitan | -1 |
T56 | Calum Hill | -1 |
T56 | Pablo Larrazabal | -1 |
T56 | Martin Couvra | -1 |
T56 | Shane Lowry | -1 |
T56 | Bernd Wiesberger | -1 |
T56 | David Puig | -1 |
T56 | Shaun Norris | -1 |
T56 | Maximilian Steinlechner | -1 |
T80 | Todd Clements | E |
T80 | Romain Langasque | E |
T80 | Casey Jarvis | E |
T80 | Thorbjoern Olesen | E |
T80 | Bud Cauley | E |
T80 | David Ravetto | E |
T80 | Francesco Laporta | E |
T80 | Sam Bairstow | E |
T80 | Adrian Meronk | E |
T80 | Matthew Fitzpatrick | E |
T80 | Alex Fitzpatrick | E |
T80 | Yurav Premlall | E |
T80 | Thomas Rosenmueller | E |
T93 | Yuto Katsuragawa | +1 |
T93 | Brooks Koepka | +1 |
T93 | Charley Hoffman | +1 |
T93 | Tommy Fleetwood | +1 |
T93 | Justin Rose | +1 |
T93 | Scott Jamieson | +1 |
T93 | Oihan Guillamoundeguy | +1 |
T93 | Brandon Stone | +1 |
T93 | Luke Donald | +1 |
T93 | Jacob Skov Olesen | +1 |
T93 | Tom McKibbin | +1 |
T93 | Oliver Lindell | +1 |
T93 | Sebastian Soederberg | +1 |
T93 | Rafael Cabrera | +1 |
T107 | Julien Guerrier | +2 |
T107 | Thriston Lawrence | +2 |
T107 | Ashun Wu | +2 |
T107 | Niklas Noergaard | +2 |
T107 | Matteo Manassero | +2 |
T107 | Frankie Capan | +2 |
T107 | Darius van Driel | +2 |
T107 | Laurie Canter | +2 |
T107 | Daniel Bradbury | +2 |
T107 | Stefano Mazzoli | +2 |
T107 | Jordan Gumberg | +2 |
T107 | Padraig Harrington | +2 |
T119 | Connor Syme | +3 |
T119 | Elvis Smylie | +3 |
T119 | Jason Scrivener | +3 |
T119 | Ockie Strydom | +3 |
T119 | Jack Senior | +3 |
T124 | Marcel Schneider | +4 |
T124 | Ugo Coussaud | +4 |
T124 | Rikuya Hoshino | +4 |
T124 | Renato Paratore | +4 |
T124 | Michael Hollick | +4 |
T124 | Dylan Naidoo | +4 |
T124 | Wenyi Ding | +4 |
T131 | Tom Vaillant | +5 |
T131 | Hennie Du Plessis | +5 |
T131 | J. C. Ritchie | +5 |
T131 | Victor Perez | +5 |
T131 | Ashley Mansell | +5 |
T136 | Grant Forrest | +6 |
T136 | Jon Rahm | +6 |
T136 | Dylan Frittelli | +6 |
T136 | Angel Hidalgo | +6 |
T136 | Ivan Cantero | +6 |
T136 | Daniel Gavins | +6 |
T136 | Ryggs Johnston | +6 |
143 | Marcel Siem | +7 |
144 | Daniel Brown | +10 (WD) |
Instead, his wayward driving began to cause problems and he was forced to settle for a score that left him three shots off the lead.
McIlroy's playing partner Aaron Rai took advantage, producing a composed 66 to share top spot with Sweden's Joakim Lagergren.
Rai, the US PGA champion, made seven birdies and one bogey as he continued his strong form, while Ryan Gerard, Adam Scott and Ludvig Aberg are a further stroke adrift.
Patrick Reed, McIlroy's main rival in the Race to Dubai standings, was among those on 4-under after a 68, alongside Viktor Hovland and Open champion Ryan Fox.
For Rahm, meanwhile, the opening day could scarcely have gone worse.
The Spaniard carded a 6-over 78, matching his highest score on the DP World Tour, to leave himself deep in the field and facing an early battle to make the cut.
Rahm managed just one birdie, at the 12th, against five bogeys and a double bogey.
His putting proved particularly costly, with missed opportunities contributing to a round that left him 12 shots behind the leaders.
It was a remarkable contrast for a player who arrived at after winning his third successive LIV Golf individual championship.
Rahm wasn't the only big name to struggle.
Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose, Matthew Fitzpatrick and Brooks Koepka are all way down the leaderboard.
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