Rory McIlroy opened his Genesis Invitational campaign with a strong round of 66 at Riviera, setting himself up nicely for the week ahead.
He carded six birdies against just one bogey to leave him in a good position early on. Before play began, McIlroy had voiced his dislike of the recent changes to Riviera’s fourth hole.
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But that didn’t stop him from picking up a birdie there during his opening round.
The Northern Irishman finished the day five-under-par, just one shot behind Aaron Rai, who set the early pace with a 65. With plenty of golf left to play, McIlroy will feel well placed heading into Friday’s second round.
There was also good news for fans back home: full live coverage of each round is available on Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event throughout the week.
Rory McIlroy says his game is still improving after opening round 66 at Riviera
Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Over the last 15 years, McIlroy has established himself as one of the top golfers of his era, and his record speaks for itself.
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His competitiveness and determination to win were evident again on Thursday at Riviera.
After finishing his round, McIlroy was asked by reporters about the challenges of playing Riviera in the windy and wet conditions.
McIlroy said: “Yeah, I’ve definitely got more comfortable playing in conditions like this over the past few years.”
“I’ve gotten more comfortable in controlling my ball flight, and controlling my ball flight taking a lot more club, hitting the ball low.
“Yeah, and I’ve started to just really enjoy this style of golf. If you had asked me 10 years ago, I didn’t enjoy these conditions, but it’s been a shift in a mindset and maybe just a continuation of trying to build upon the skill set that I have.
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“Then when it does get to conditions like this, I’m a lot more prepared. I wouldn’t say I enjoy them, but I can certainly handle them better. As I said, I haven’t always enjoyed these conditions. I haven’t always — honestly, I haven’t always had the skill set to excel in them.
Looking at McIlroy’s numbers from the opening round of the Genesis Invitational
McIlroy finds himself in a good position after day one at Riviera.
But with plenty of golf still to be played, there’s a lot that could change. More than half the field is still yet to finish their opening rounds due to a three-hour rain delay on Thursday.
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The 2025 Masters champion will be pleased with how things are looking early on, but what do the stats say about his game right now?
The numbers show that McIlroy was pretty steady across all areas of his game.
His driving wasn’t quite up to his usual high standards, but that’s rarely an issue for him over multiple rounds. Expect him to find his rhythm off the tee as play continues into Friday.
Adding a win at Riviera would be another milestone for him. It’s one of those venues that carries real weight in golf history, and he’s spoken before about how winning at places like this has become more important to him as his career goes on.
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If he can maintain this level, and continue making incremental gains in certain parts of his game, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him add more majors to his tally before long.
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