McIlroy Takes 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, with Jason Day, Patrick Reed, and Kurt Kitayama a shot back in tied-third. Justin Rose, who finished runner-up to McIlroy last year, was within one of the lead until consecutive bogeys saw him finish two under. Bryson DeChambeau, meanwhile, had a nightmare start, carding a four-over 76, while former champion Jon Rahm struggled to a 78. McIlroy, looking 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, taking advantage of the par-five 13th, and 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 patient and leaned heavily on my experience to get the most out of it." Kitayama briefly held the solo lead after four birdies in a five-hole stretch, while Reed also led after eagling both par-fives on the first nine. Scheffler threatened the clubhouse target but played the rest of his round in one over to slip three off the leaders. Rose, a three-time runner-up at Augusta National, sits tied-sixth after carding five birdies and three bogeys, with Lowry recovering from being over-par after seven holes to also get back to two under. Aaron Rai is among the group on one under as he bids to become the first player to claim the Masters Par 3 Contest and major victory in the same week. DeChambeau took three attempts to get out of a greenside bunker on his way to a triple-bogey seven at the 11th, leaving him nine strokes adrift, while Rahm is tied-73rd in a 91-man field after failing to register a birdie on the opening day.