McIlroy Takes Early Lead at Augusta as DeChambeau Struggles

Rory McIlroy, the defending champion, made a strong start to his title defense at The Masters, sharing the lead with Sam Burns after the first round. McIlroy carded a 67, which included five birdies in an eight-hole stretch, to finish five under par. He is joined at the top of the leaderboard by Burns, with Jason Day, Patrick Reed, and Kurt Kitayama two shots back in tied-third. Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, and world No 1 Scottie Scheffler are also in contention, within three shots of the lead. Meanwhile, Bryson DeChambeau had a disastrous start, shooting a four-over 76, while former champion Jon Rahm struggled to a 78. McIlroy, seeking to become the first back-to-back winner at The Masters since Tiger Woods, found momentum after a slow start, with successive birdies helping him reach the turn in 34. He continued his birdie burst on the back nine, taking advantage of the par-five 13th and 15th holes to pull level with Burns. McIlroy missed a chance for the solo lead at the 17th but equalled the second-lowest opening round by a defending champion. '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.' Kitayama briefly held the solo lead after four birdies in a five-hole stretch, while Reed and Scheffler also had their moments at the top of the leaderboard. Rose sits tied-sixth after carding five birdies and three bogeys, with Lowry recovering from being over-par after seven holes to get back to two under. DeChambeau's triple-bogey seven at the 11th left him nine strokes adrift, and Rahm is tied-73rd after failing to register a birdie on the opening day.