Lowry and Brown flawless as McIlroy in Troon trouble

Shane Lowry made a flawless start to his bid for a second Open title as Rory McIlroy effectively wrote off his chances of doing the same at Royal Troon yesterday.

- PHIL CASEY

Lowry carded five birdies in a bogey-free 66 that was only surpassed at 9.33pm by England's Daniel Brown, the world number number 272 returning a brilliant 65 to claim a shock lead on his Open debut.

Brown, who won his maiden DP World Tour title in Northern Ireland 11 months ago, took advantage of calmer conditions for the later starters to birdie the third, fifth, 10th, 11th, 16th and 18th.

“I’m very excited but you have to keep your feet on the ground,” said the 29-year-old from Northallerton, who finished 61st in the Scottish Open on Sunday after a run of six missed cuts and a withdrawal in his last seven starts. “I am just going to try and go out and do the best I can.”

The contrast between Lowry’s 66 and the 78 of McIlroy immediately brought to mind the 2019 Open at Royal Portrush, when Lowry started with a 67 on his way to the Claret Jug and McIlroy’s chances were blown away with a 79.

“I’m pretty happy, but it’s only one day,” Lowry said. “We’ve got three more days. I kept telling myself that out there because for some reason I felt like the crowd were getting very excited. It was late in the afternoon and a few pints of Tennent’s were had out there. It felt more like the weekend.