McIlroy bids to squirrel away better form

RORY McILROY hit a squirrelly first shot at the Travelers Championship in Connecticut yesterday – but that was hardly surprising after the distraction he faced on the tee.

The Co Down man had taken a couple of waggles with his driver and was just about to pull the trigger on his shot when a nervous squirrel darted onto the teeing ground, about 10 yards directly in front of the player.

McIlroy aborted his swing and started laughing, as the squirrel scurried off to exit stage right, but it was unable to find a way through the packed gallery lining the fairway.

The rodent then bounded across to the other side of the fairway, but was similarly blocked from exiting, so it headed back to the tee ground, where McIlroy’s caddie Harry Diamond chased it away.

The term ‘squirrelly shot’ in golf is often used to describe one that’s not struck well and, sure enough, when McIlroy finally hit his drive, it sailed off wide right into the rough.

While the squirrel reappeared on the teeing ground moments later at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, McIlroy tried to atone for his errant tee shot but despite making the green with his second, then three-putted from long range for an opening bogey.

The poor start dropped him four strokes behind overnight leader Brian Harman of America and he eventually finished on eight under after a 69 with Seamus Power on three under and Padriag Harrington on five over for his three rounds.

Meanwhile, English pair Chris Paisley and Aaron Rai played themselves into a six-way tie for the lead on a dramatic third day of the BMW International Open in Germany.

Scott Hend entered yesterday with a one-shot lead and with calmer conditions seemingly presenting the chance for lower scoring on the outskirts of Cologne, it looked ominous when the Australian moved to seven under and into a two-shot lead on the front nine.

The wind increased later in the day, however, and when Hend eventually signed for a one over par 73, Paisley and Rai had reeled him in alongside home favourites Martin Kaymer and Maximilian Kieffer, and Dane Lucas Bjerregaard.

Bjerregaard was the first man to set the target as he equalled the lowest round of the week with a 67.