McIlroy Seizes Early Lead at Augusta as DeChambeau Struggles

Rory McIlroy, the defending champion, made a strong start to his bid for back-to-back Masters titles, sharing the lead with Sam Burns after the opening round at Augusta National. McIlroy carded a 67, which included five birdies in an eight-hole stretch, to finish five under par. He was joined at the top of the leaderboard by Burns, who set the initial clubhouse target. Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, and world number one Scottie Scheffler are among those in contention, but Bryson DeChambeau had a nightmare start, struggling to a four-over 76. McIlroy, who is seeking to become the first player to retain the Green Jacket since Tiger Woods, found momentum after a slow start, with successive birdies helping him reach the turn in 34. He then started a fresh birdie burst by taking advantage of the par-five 13th, before another birdie at the next took him to four under with four holes to play. McIlroy avoided a repeat of last year's expensive finish, taking advantage of the par-five 15th to pull level with Burns. 'I felt like I got a lot out of my round,' McIlroy said. 'It started pretty scrappy, but I stayed really patient when I needed to.' Kitayama briefly held the solo lead after four birdies in a five-hole stretch, before recovering from dropping three shots in two holes to card a three-under 69. Reed and Scheffler are also in the mix, despite both players experiencing mixed fortunes during their opening rounds. Rose, a three-time runner-up at Augusta National, sits tied-sixth after carding five birdies and three bogeys, while Lowry recovered from being over-par after seven holes to also get back to two under. DeChambeau, meanwhile, is nine strokes adrift after a triple-bogey seven at the 11th, and former champion Jon Rahm stuttered to an opening-round 78.