KICKED IN THE SHINN

Mcilroy equals his worst ever round in a Major after horrific 10 over... but he’s far from the only struggler

RAGING Rory Mcilroy stormed from Shinnecock Hills in silence after equalling his worst-ever score for one round at a Major.

The Ulsterman’s nightmare 10-over par opening round of 80 matched previous horror shows when he blew the lead at the 2011 Masters and the 2010 Open at St Andrews.

While English stars Ian Poulter and Justin Rose fired themselves into the hunt with scores of 69 and 71 on a testing breezy morning on the Long Island links, Mcilroy already looks destined to miss the cut for the third year in a row.

The four-time Major winner and 2011 champion of this event saw the wheels come off almost from the start.

Beginning on the 10th tee with Jordan Spieth and Phil Mickelson, this marquee group was quickly blown away as they all struggled.

Mcilroy had been bullish about his prospects after a lengthy spell of preparation at Shinnecock and other courses on Long Island but after missing from seven feet for birdie on the 10th, his opening hole, he dropped six shots in the next four holes.

A birdie on the 15th briefly stopped the rot but Mcilroy bogeyed the 16th and 18th to reach the turn in 42 and then ran up a double bogey on the first after a wayward tee shot.

It is the first time the former world number one has carded three double bogeys in a round in the Majors and although he birdied the fifth and sixth, further shots were squandered on the seventh and ninth.

In the end, Spieth was only marginally better, signing for a 78 while Mickelson managed one shot fewer on a day for the three superstars to forget.

Mcilroy marched away from the scorer’s hut without speaking.

But Poulter held court on his excellent pace-setting one-under par round that tied him for the lead before the afternoon starters teed off.

Poulter (below) said: “Patience is everything, especially this week. “Every one of the US Opens I’ve played in the past I’ve been disappointed. I’ve been angry. I’ve been frustrated. They’re tough. They’re always set up difficult, they’re supposed to be – but shooting over par is hard to take sometimes.

“So this week for me, from a mindset perspective, it was about relaxing. I know I’m playing good golf. I got off to a decent start this year and it’s really about trying to just enjoy my golf.

“I certainly did that today.

I enjoyed everything about the round. I made a couple of good up and downs and I only dropped a couple of shots.

“It was an enjoyable round of golf, but then we’ve got three more stressful days to come.”

Rose was glad to get through the day still within sight of the leaderboard.

After his one-over par 71, he said: “I’m just happy it’s over.

“When I arrived here I’m like, ‘Whoa, what’s going on with the wind?’

“The flags were already fluttering dead straight. So I knew I was in for a tough day then I heard it was going to pick up even more.”

With no let up in the conditions, Tiger Woods began his quest for a 15th Major with a triple bogey on the first and a bogey on the second but birdied the fifth to reach the turn in three over.