Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
RORY’S HOST OF PROBLEMS
Defending champion in fight to make cut
TOURNAMENT host Rory Mcilroy’s hopes of defending the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open title are on the ropes heading into today’s second round at Portstewart. A frustrating day on the greens and an opening round level par 72 yesterday leaves the World No4 eight shots off joint leaders Benjamin Hebert and Daniel Im. Mcilroy, bidding to become the first player since Colin Montgomerie in 1996/97 to retain the title, tees it up at 8.20am and faces an early exit unless he cards a low score on the Causeway Coast. Asked if he might need to shoot in the region of 64 to stay in contention, Mcilroy said: “I’m not chasing any number but I need to shoot something around that. “It’s not a goal but I know I have to go out there and play well. If I hit fairways and hit greens and take a few chances, hopefully at the end of the day it’ll add up to something like that. I still feel out there and
GRIMACE UP NORTH Rory Mcilroy feels frustration of his Portstewart round. Right, co-leader Hebert
shoot three scores in the mid-60s over the next three days, I’ll get to somewhere around 18 or 20-under par and that might be good enough.” American Im, currently ranked 542nd in the world, carded a career best 64 to share the lead with Frenchman Hebert who also shot a bogey-free round. World No2 Hideki Matsuyama ended the day on 5-under, while Spanish sensation Jon Rahm lies one shot off the lead at 7-under after a round of six birdies and an eagle at the par-5 seventh. Rahm, who apologised earlier this week for a well documented temper tantrum at the US Open, said: “The atmosphere was so good and my attitude was probably the best it’s been all year. “I stayed calm. The result showed how good it was, but tomorrow is a new day and hopefully I can keep it going.”