Rory McIlroy suffers from rustiness in opening-round 74 at St Jude Championship

Rory McIlroy's return to competitive golf was met with a challenging opening round at the St. Jude Championship, where he carded a four-over-par 74. Playing for the first time since last month's Open Championship, McIlroy appeared to be suffering from a lack of sharpness at TPC Southwind in Memphis. The Northern Irishman's round concluded poorly with consecutive bogeys and a double bogey, including a costly error on the par-four 18th where he drove into the water. This performance places him towards the bottom of the leaderboard in the opening event of the FedEx Cup playoffs. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, playing alongside McIlroy, posted a more solid 68, noting he felt he hit many quality iron shots and remained patient throughout his round. Meanwhile, Jordan Spieth rediscovered his form, sharing the clubhouse lead with Michael Thorbjornsen and Kurt Kitayama at five-under-par 65. Spieth, who has not achieved a top-10 finish all season, spoke about adopting a patient and non-reactive mindset, believing in his improved game. Shane Lowry, needing a strong performance to advance in the FedEx Cup standings, finished his round at one-under-par 69 after a mixed round that included a double bogey and two birdies. McIlroy will be looking to shake off the rustiness as he prepares for the upcoming BMW Championship and the Tour Championship.

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I felt like I hit a lot of quality shots with my irons. I did a good job of being patient and not trying to force it too much. I feel like I was right on the edge of having a good day kind of all day is how I would describe it. So I felt like, patience-wise, I did a pretty good job.