Rory McIlroy

Group-stage play continued for a second day in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play on Thursday at Austin Country Club.

Arnold Palmer Invitational winner Bryson DeChambeau rebounded from a loss to Antoine Rozner to beat Si Woo Kim 2 and 1. Likewise, Rory McIlroy got his first win to balance out an opening day summed up by a tee shot that landed in the pool of a nearby homeowner.

Top seed Dustin Johnson, on the other hand, had to settle for a tie with Robert MacIntyre.

             

Round 2 Results

Group 1: Dustin Johnson tied Robert MacIntyre

Group 1: Adam Long def. Kevin Na (2 and 1)

Group 2: Kevin Kisner def. Justin Thomas (2 and 1)

Group 2: Matt Kuchar def. Louis Oosthuizen (1 up)

Group 3: Jon Rahm def. Shane Lowry (2 up)

Group 3: Ryan Palmer def. Sebastian Munoz (2 and 1)

Group 4: Max Homa def. Collin Morikawa (2 and 1)

Group 4: J.T. Poston def. Billy Horschel (4 and 2)

Group 5: Bryson DeChambeau def. Si Woo Kim (2 and 1)

Group 5: Tommy Fleetwood def. Antoine Rozner (4 and 3) 

Group 6: Xander Schauffele def. Jason Day (2 and 1)

Group 6: Scottie Scheffler tied Andy Sullivan

Group 7: Patrick Reed def. Christiaan Bezuidenhout (2 and 1)

Group 7: Joaquin Niemann tied Bubba Watson

Group 8: Sergio Garcia def. Tyrrell Hatton (3 and 2)

Group 8: Lee Westwood def. Matt Wallace (5 and 3)

Group 9: Mackenzie Hughes def. Webb Simpson (4 and 3)

Group 9: Paul Casey def. Talor Gooch (3 and 2)

Group 10: Patrick Cantlay def. Carlos Ortiz (1 up)

Group 10: Brian Harman def. Hideki Matsuyama (1 up)

Group 11: Rory McIlroy def. Lanto Griffin (4 and 3)

Group 11: Ian Poulter def. Cameron Smith (1 up)

Group 12: Tony Finau tied Will Zalatoris

Group 12: Dylan Frittelli def. Jason Kokrak (3 and 2)

Group 13: Bernd Wiesberger def. Viktor Hovland (4 and 2)

Group 13: Abraham Ancer def. Kevin Streelman (2 and 1)

Group 14: Brendon Todd def. Daniel Berger (2 and 1) 

Group 14: Erik van Rooyen def. Harris English (2 and 1)

Group 15: Matt Fitzpatrick def. Corey Conners (5 and 4)

Group 15: Matthew Wolff tied Jordan Spieth

Group 16: Marc Leishman def. Sungjae Im (2 and 1)

Group 16: Russell Henley def. Victor Perez (4 and 3)

          

A slow start doomed McIlroy against Ian Poulter. He fell behind by three holes as he approached the No. 6 tee and couldn't climb back from that deficit.

It was the opposite story against Lanto Griffin. The 2015 tournament champion took the first three holes to build a commanding lead. His advantage shrunk to one-up as they made the turn to the back nine but then swelled back to four-up through 13 holes.

After losing his match on Wednesday, @McIlroyRory hit 11 bags of balls on the range ...

Today, he earned a 4&3 victory over Lanto Griffin.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/ahVCcMUBsS

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 25, 2021

"It was big," McIlroy told reporters of the result. "Obviously winning the match keeps me in the tournament but I didn’t play that badly yesterday. I hit a couple of destructive shots but Poults played very well and deserved to win the match."

DeChambeau led for most of the way against Kim but struggled to build any distance on the No. 48 seed. Kim was briefly ahead on the back nine after taking the 10th and 11th holes.

DeChambeau battled back on No. 14 to tie things up, and a par on No. 15 was enough to put him on top once again. He dealt the final blow with a par on No. 17 to leave Kim with no road to victory.

One benefit of match play is that a bad shot doesn't have as big of an impact as it would on a traditional round. On No. 10, DeChambeau attempted to reach the green off the tee and instead sliced the shot so badly it went nearly 90 degrees to the right of the tee box.

DeChambeau explaining what happened on No. 10 today: "I heel-pulled it lower than I wanted, came off low off the face. Hey, look, I was trying to drive the green, whether it was the practice green or the 10th green. I got it close,” he laughed. pic.twitter.com/0QVkqqxTqD

— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) March 25, 2021

Laughing off one of those misfires is a lot easier when you still pull out the win.

Johnson's tie with MacIntyre was a tale of two halves. Johnson was one-up for seven of the first eight holes before MacIntyre leveled the score with a birdie on No. 9. The 24-year-old Scot then overtook Johnson and led for the first seven holes of the back nine.

A late surge by the two-time major champion allowed him to at least avoid defeat. He eagled the 16th hole and birdied No. 17.

Eagle-birdie.

2 in a row for @DJohnsonPGA.

He heads to the 18th hole tied with Robert MacIntyre.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/b9hB5NQHF7

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 25, 2021

Kevin Kisner's defense of his 2019 WGC Match Play title is rolling along nicely. The 37-year-old prevailed in a head-to-head clash with Louis Oosthuizen and dealt Justin Thomas his second loss Thursday.

Kisner was four-up through seven holes to put early pressure on Thomas, who claimed three straight holes on the back nine to almost erase the deficit. Unfortunately for Thomas, Kisner held strong the rest of the way and sealed his victory on No. 17 as both golfers recorded a par.

The round-robin group stage will continue for one more day before the field winnows to 16 golfers for the knockout stages. 

Rory McIlroy shot 10-over through 36 holes at the Players Championship and missed the projected cut line by 10 strokes.

After his second round, McIlroy spoke with reporters about his frustrations regarding his swing changes.

"Probably the swing issues and where it all stems from, probably like October last year, doing a little bit of speed training, started getting sucked into that stuff, swing got flat, long, and too rotational,'' McIlroy said, per ESPN's Bob Harig.

"Obviously I added some speed and am hitting the ball longer, but what that did to my swing as a whole probably wasn't a good thing, so I'm sort of fighting to get back out of that. That's what I'm frustrated with."

McIlroy, a four-time major winner who took home the 2019 Players Championship, shot seven-over 79 on Thursday before finishing with a three-over 75 on Friday. He has 18 professional wins to his name, with his last victory occurring at WGC-HSBC Champions in Nov. 2019.

Bryson DeChambeau's performance at the 2020 U.S. Open played a part in McIlroy's decision to switch things up after he dominated the field and won by six shots. No other player shot under par aside from DeChambeau, and that prompted the Northern Irishman to try to switch things up:

"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't anything to do with what Bryson did at the U.S. Open. I think a lot of people saw that and were like, 'Whoa, if this is the way they're going to set golf courses up in the future, it helps. It really helps.'

"The one thing that people don't appreciate is how good Bryson is out of the rough. Not only because of how upright he is but because his short irons are longer than standard, so he can get a little more speed through the rough than us, than other guys.

"And I thought being able to get some more speed is a good thing, and I maybe just—to the detriment a little bit of my swing, I got there, but I just need to maybe rein it back in a little bit.''

McIlroy has largely fared well since the 2020 U.S. Open aside from the Players Championship. Heading into Thursday, McIlroy made seven-of-eight cuts, finishing in the top 10 three times and never worse than 21st. He entered Thursday coming off a pair of top-10 performances at the WGC-Workday Championships and Arnold Palmer Invitational.

The Players' Championship was undoubtedly disappointing, but McIlroy sees a light at the end of the tunnel.

"It'll take a bit of time," McIlroy said. "Like with anything, the slightest change in your swing is going to feel uncomfortable for a while.

"It's not like it's that far away. I go back to last September, October is where it looked and felt pretty good, so it's just a matter of sort of—maybe not erasing the stuff, I'd still like to keep the speed and what I've been able to—but just not make the swings that are sort of producing that speed."

Per Harig, McIlroy's next event will be the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play beginning March 24. He'll then take time off before the Masters starts on April 8.

The second round of the 2021 Players Championship was called for darkness Friday with just eight golfers remaining on the course at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. 

Lee Westwood currently leads the field at nine-under following a six-under 66 on Friday. Matthew Fitzpatrick is one shot back at eight-under, and a scorching-hot Chris Kirk posted a seven-under 65 to move to seven-under overall on the week. Sergio Garcia is also at seven-under.

On the other half of the scoreboard, some of golf's top stars will not be moving onto the weekend after failing to make the projected even-par cut line, including Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and Tony Finau.

Here's a look at some notable names who shot over par after 36 holes.

                    

Notable Cuts

Hideki Matsuyama: +1

Bubba Watson: +2

Tommy Fleetwood: +2

Gary Woodland: +2

Viktor Hovland: +2

Webb Simpson: +2

Francesco Molinari: +3

Tony Finau: +3

Xander Schauffele: +4

Patrick Cantlay: +5

Rickie Fowler: +6

Matt Kuchar: +7

Rory McIlroy: +10

Henrik Stenson: +15

Full scoreboard can be found on PGATour.com.

        

Cut Line Notes

The most notable cut is the four-time major winner and defending Players Championship winner McIlroy, who shot a seven-over 79 Thursday before following up with a three-over 75 on Friday. He finished his two days at 10-over, or 10 shots behind the even-par score needed to move onto Saturday.

Henrik Stenson, the 2015 Open champion, had no realistic path to the weekend after his 13-over 85 on Thursday placed last in the entire field. He fared far better on Friday and even ended his day with an eagle on the par-five ninth, but the Swede will be going home early.

Three double bogeys on his first 18 holes led to Fowler posting a five-over 77 on Thursday. He needed to rally on Friday to have a chance, but he started his round with four pars and a double bogey to fall to seven-over. The 2015 Players' champion will not be moving on.

Like Fowler, Xander Schauffele struggled on Thursday, notably shooting over par on five of the back nine holes. He had bogeys on No. 11 through No. 13, a double bogey on the famed 17th hole and another bogey on the 18th. He did birdie 14th, but the damage was done.

A double bogey on No. 5 Friday hurt Hovland's chances after opening his second round with two birdies through four holes to move to even-par overall. Hovland then proceeded to shoot even 

Patrick Cantlay was one-over overall after his first seven holes on Friday, but very little went right down the stretch. He bogeyed the eighth, double-bogeyed the 15th and bogeyed the last to finish five-over through 36 holes. Per PGATour.com, Cantlay lost 2.784 strokes putting. 

A disastrous start to his tournament ultimately led to Finau missing this week's cut despite finishing strong. He went six-over through the first seven holes Thursday, including a double bogey on No. 1 and bogeys on No. 2 and No. 3. Finau had a chance at a miracle finish Friday to make the cut by going four-under on the front nine, but he had eight pars and one bogey on the back nine to end his week at three-over.

A pair of U.S. Open winners in Webb Simpson and Gary Woodland found themselves in the same position this week. They both started strong Thursday, with Simpson shooting one-under 71 and Woodland doing one better. However, their respective back nines on Friday led to them slipping below the cut line at two-over each.

Simpson shot four-over from the 14th through 17th holes, including a double bogey on the 17th after finding the water off the tee. Woodland had bogeys on the 13th, 15th and 18th holes to finish his Friday with a four-over 76.

While COVID-19 has not fully loosened its grip on the sports world, golf is faring far better in March 2021 than it was in March 2020, and The Players Championship, the first big golf event this year, feels like a beacon of hope for the PGA Tour slate this year. The 154-player field highlights 48 of the top 50 players in the world.

The first round got underway Thursday at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, with featured groups including Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay and Viktor Hovland; Rory McIlroy, Webb Simpson and Sergio Garcia; Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed; and Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Collin Morikawa.

Sawgrass is a course that rewards elite ball-striking, which Spain's Sergio Garcia has in spades. So it's no wonder Garcia, who leads by two shots after a seven-under 65, said on the broadcast at the end of Thursday's action that Sawgrass is one of his top two favorite courses in the world to play. (The other? Valderrama in Spain, of course.)

Brian Harman is second on the leaderboard at five under. Matthew Fitzpatrick, Corey Conners and Shane Lowry are all tied at four under.

But the day wasn't as kind to the rest of the field. The 17th hole has been a thorn in many Tour players' sides over the years, and Thursday was no different. 

As the first round drew to a close, 35 balls had landed in the water surrounding hole No. 17, the second-most single-day total ever at the Players. (The most was 50, back in the first round in 2007.) Poor Byeong Hun An had three water balls himself on his way to an 11, just one behind Bob Tway's record 12 on the hole in 2005. 

Absolute carnage on No. 17 today. 🤯

31 water balls ... so far.pic.twitter.com/zDF0OmxQu6

— THE PLAYERS (@THEPLAYERS) March 11, 2021

The carnage was halted temporarily as play was suspended because of darkness at 6:32 p.m. ET. But No. 17 will surely claim more victims by the time the sun sets Friday. Players who did not finish their rounds will resume at 7:30 a.m.

Let's take a look at what's in store at Sawgrass for Friday, when the second round of competition begins at 6:45 a.m. Follow along on TV on Golf Channel or streaming on PGA Tour Live and Twitter. 

      

Players Championship Round 2: Tee Times, Pairings and Predictions

1st Hole

6:45 a.m. Peter Malnati, Emiliano Grillo, Abraham Ancer

6:56 a.m. Anirban Lahiri, Kyoung-Hoon Lee, Robby Shelton

7:07 a.m. Branden Grace, Sung Kang, Jimmy Walker

7:18 a.m. Hudson Swafford, Brandt Snedeker, Scott Piercy

7:29 a.m. Jim Herman, Ryan Armour, Mackenzie Hughes

7:40 a.m. Nate Lashley, Ryan Palmer, Zach Johnson

7:51 a.m. Robert Streb, Marc Leishman, Steve Stricker

8:02 a.m. Chez Reavie, Bubba Watson, Pat Perez

8:13 a.m. Patton Kizzire, Jason Dufner, Kramer Hickok

8:24 a.m. James Hahn, Tommy Fleetwood, Harold Varner III

8:35 a.m. Adam Hadwin, Patrick Rodgers, Mark Hubbard

8:46 a.m. Ryan Moore, Sepp Straka, Scott Harrington

8:57 a.m. Jhonattan Vegas, Talor Gooch, Tom Lewis

12:05 p.m. Kyle Stanley, Lucas Glover, Tyler McCumber

12:16 p.m. Russell Henley, Tom Hoge, Scottie Scheffler

12:27 p.m. C.T. Pan, Graeme McDowell, Matt Kuchar

12:38 p.m. Gary Woodland, Billy Horschel, Ian Poulter

12:49 p.m. Viktor Hovland, Patrick Cantlay, Justin Thomas

1 p.m. Sergio Garcia, Webb Simpson, Rory McIlroy

1:11 p.m. Si Woo Kim, Kristoffer Ventura, Hideki Matsuyama

1:22 p.m. Tyrrell Hatton, Paul Casey, Xander Schauffele

1:33 p.m. Lanto Griffin, Corey Conners, Rickie Fowler

1:44 p.m. Brendon Todd, Adam Long, Andrew Putnam

1:55 p.m. Charl Schwartzel, Doc Redman, Harry Higgs

2:06 p.m. Sam Burns, Wyndham Clark, Victor Perez

2:17 p.m. Scott Stallings, Adam Schenk

     

10th Hole

6:45 a.m. Cameron Tringale, Denny McCarthy, Matthew NeSmith

6:56 a.m. Brian Harman, Cameron Percy, Bernd Wiesberger

7:07 a.m. Martin Laird, Tyler Duncan, Joaquin Niemann

7:18 a.m. Richy Werenski, Aaron Wise, Kevin Streelman

7:29 a.m. Patrick Reed, Jon Rahm, Jordan Spieth

7:40 a.m. Bryson DeChambeau, Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson

7:51 a.m. Daniel Berger, Adam Scott, Shane Lowry

8:02 a.m. Andrew Landry, Cameron Champ, Brendan Steele

8:13 a.m. Jason Kokrak, Francesco Molinari, Jason Day

8:24 a.m. Charley Hoffman, Rory Sabbatini, Cameron Davis

8:35 a.m. Matt Jones, Maverick McNealy, Will Zalatoris

8:46 a.m. Chris Kirk, Luke List, Bo Hoag

8:57 a.m. Brian Stuard, Danny Lee, Beau Hossler

12:05 p.m. Alex Noren, Xinjun Zhang, Doug Ghim

12:16 p.m. Louis Oosthuizen, Lee Westwood, Robert MacIntyre

12:27 p.m. Phil Mickelson, Charles Howell III, Tony Finau

12:38 p.m. Sungjae Im, Kevin Kisner, Henrik Stenson

12:49 p.m. Keith Mitchell, Troy Merritt, Brice Garnett

1 p.m. Brian Gay, Michael Thompson, Sebastián Muñoz

1:11 p.m. Cameron Smith, Dylan Frittelli, Keegan Bradley

1:22 p.m. Kevin Na, Carlos Ortiz, Matthew Fitzpatrick

1:33 p.m. Max Homa, J.T. Poston, Russell Knox

1:44 p.m. Stewart Cink, Nick Taylor, Austin Cook

1:55 p.m. Byeong Hun An, Henrik Norlander, Christiaan Bezuidenhout

2:06 p.m. Vaughn Taylor, Jerry Kelly, Joel Dahmen

2:17 p.m. Scott Brown, Sam Ryder 

The question on everyone's minds after Round 1 is if Garcia is gearing up for another Players Championship win; he last won in 2008. There's no question that this course is tailored especially well to Garcia's skills with iron and wedge play. 

In 76 career rounds at TPC Sawgrass, @TheSergioGarcia is 33-under on the 9th hole.

He ends on an eagle and leads by two. pic.twitter.com/KXaNTZSRDo

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 11, 2021

Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy, who won at Sawgrass in 2019, is the defending champion after the 2020 event was canceled for COVID-19. However, his chances of keeping the gold trophy for a third year aren't looking great after his disastrous Round 1. 

By the end of Thursday's action, McIlroy was seven-over 79 in the opening round, his career worst at Sawgrass. 

And, in a twist that feels too unreal to be true, McIlroy was paired with Garcia. 

"(It's) very hard, especially when you're trying to figure it out as you go along on course," McIlroy said, per PGATour.com. "You're trying to figure it out, but you still know you're not really sure where the shots are coming from and then it's hard to try to eliminate one side of the golf course, basically."

There were other outings that players would surely love to have back on Thursday. Henrik Stenson, the 2009 Players champion, shot 85. Rickie Fowler, who won in 2015, took a 77 thanks to three double bogeys. Tony Finau's 78 was also a career worst at Sawgrass by three shots. 

As for what we can expect during Friday's Round 2 action, more misery at No. 17 and more dominance by Garcia both seem probable. 

While it's not the single-most prestigious tournament on the PGA tour calendar, the Players Championship offers both a coveted trophy and lucrative payout.

TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, hosts the event, which is slated for March 11-14, 2021. The course is famous for the "Island Green," a 137-yard par three that is surrounded by water and provides a nerve-testing finish to every round.

And players know it for the massive purse.

Other than the Tour Championship to close the FedEx Cup, the Players Championship has the largest payday on tour.

Last year, a total of $15 million would have been distributed to the 50-person field with $2.7 million to the winner. The purse and winner's prize money are the same in 2021.

Since the coronavirus pandemic halted the 2020 Players after the first round, Rory McIlroy technically enters as the defending champion. He shot a 16-under 272 in 2019, edging Jim Furyk by a shot and earning $2.25 million of a $12.5 million purse.

McIlroy, who didn't win a tournament last year, is hoping the return to Sawgrass also brings back his winning form.

"It's good to be back," he said, per Mark Cannizzaro of the New York Post. "It's nice, like I get another bite at the cherry."

McIlroy is a top contender, but 2020 FedEx Cup champion Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau are among the early favorites. They're paired together for the opening rounds, too.

DeChambeau, the winner of last week's Arnold Palmer Invitational, has already forced some changes at Sawgrass. After he suggested trying to drive the ball up the ninth fairway—left of the lake—on the 18th, the PGA nixed that idea.

"In the interest of safety for spectators and other personnel, the Players Championship Rules Committee has installed an internal out of bounds left of the lake for play of hole 18," a statement said.

DeChambeau, Johnson and Collin Morikawa are slated to start Thursday's round at 1 p.m. ET on the first hole. They'll follow Patrick Reed, Jon Rahm and Jordan Spieth at 12:49 p.m.

Additionally, three notable groups start on the 10th early in the morning. Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay and Viktor Hovland hit the course at 7:29 a.m., followed by McIlroy, Sergio Garcia and Webb Simpson at 7:40 a.m. and Tyrell Hatton, Xander Schauffele and Paul Casey at 8:02 a.m. local time.

The battle for $2.7 million should be highly entertaining, particularly if the Island Green comes into play Sunday.

          

Follow Bleacher Report writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.

Rory McIlroy appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and discussed a number of topics, including honoring Tiger Woods during the final round of the WGC-Workday Championship on Feb. 28.

“Everyone coming out in red and black on Sunday a couple weeks ago was just a very small way to show that we are thinking about him and hopefully we see him back out here again soon.”

-@McIlroyRory reflects on fellow athletes wearing red and black for Tiger Woods #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/7PMceglCNI

— The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) March 10, 2021

McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Tony Finau and other golfers showed support for Woods by wearing a red shirt and black pants, the typical Sunday outfit of the 15-time major winner.

Rory in Tiger red and black. “Don’t wear it as good as he does, but it’ll be all right.” pic.twitter.com/S8TJze3U47

— Ryan Lavner (@RyanLavnerGC) February 28, 2021

Seemed fitting for tomorrow after the kind of week we’ve had... Black and red on Sunday for TW! pic.twitter.com/TOUcWnUf1p

— Justin Thomas (@JustinThomas34) February 28, 2021

Sunday red. 🔴
Black pants. ⚫
Backwards hat. 🧢@TonyFinauGolf is showing his support for Tiger. https://t.co/2PjHduPxdn pic.twitter.com/i3YWbR5Yew

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 28, 2021

Woods suffered serious injuries after a single-car crash in Los Angeles on Feb. 23 and is currently recovering. McIlroy told Fallon that he had spoken to Woods and that he is "doing better."

As for McIlroy, the defending Players Championship winner will be looking to win back-to-back titles at the event beginning Thursday at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

Corey Conners is halfway to earning his second career PGA Tour victory, and he could do so at the Arnold Palmer Invitational with a wire-to-wire victory after shooting a second-round 69 at Bay Hill outside Orlando, Florida, on Friday. 

Now nine under par, the 29-year-old holds the solo lead for first place, breaking a tie with Rory McIlroy after first-round play Thursday. The Canadian played a nearly perfect Friday with a lone bogey on hole No. 2 serving as the only blemish. Two birdies and an eagle helped keep him under 70, but he'll have plenty of work to do on moving day. 

The top of the leaderboard features a number of golf's top players all within striking distance of the lead: 

1. Corey Conners (-9)

2. Martin Laird (-8)

T3. Rory McIlroy (-7)

T3. Lanto Griffin (-7)

6. Bryson DeChambeau (-6)

T7. Paul Casey (-5)

T7. Sungjae Im (-5)

T7. Justin Rose (-5)

T7. Jordan Spieth (-5)

Notables: T11. Matthew Fitzpatrick (-4), T11. Max Homa (-4), T21. Jason Day (-2), T26. Ian Poulter (-1), T26. Steve Stricker (-1), T38. Harold Varner III (E), T38. Danny Willett (E), T53. Hideki Matsuyama (+1)

Full leaderboard available via PGA Tour

     

Recap

"That ball was out of bounds longer than it was in bounds."#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/cl1F3tCShA

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

Viktor Hovland nearly had the round of the weekend but just missed out on an ace at hole No. 14. Instead the hole wound up indicative of Norwegian's day—almost perfect, if not for a few missteps. 

JUST missed the ace. 🤏 😩#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/W8vaRJdKh5

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

Hovland cleaned up for a birdie on No. 14 after sticking his drive five feet from the cup. That it came after a bogey on No. 13 made it all the more necessary, but if Hovland seemed like he was extra aggressive with his drives, it's only because his exceptional putting allowed for it. 

Two birdies thru three holes. ⬆️

Viktor Hovland gets to -5 and one back of the lead.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/hlAUNkcuIC

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

A touch of class from the bunker. 🏖️

Back-to-back birdies for Viktor Hovland has him 3 shots back @APinv. pic.twitter.com/xzLZmCkRth

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

The 23-year-old hit 61.1 percent of his greens in regulation on Friday and gained 1.62 strokes putting while sinking seven birdies and three bogeys. With birdies on two of his first three holes, Hovland looked as dialed in as possible. His ability to bounce back from his mistakes on the front nine after similar issues ended his run at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January further highlighted the young star's quick development on the tour. 

Similarly, Jordan Spieth continued his bounce-back season as he looks to snap a three-year drought without a tour victory. The Texan put together his eighth round under 70 since the start of February, finishing up with three birdies on the back nine to keep him within striking distance of the lead. 

After identifying the ball, @JDayGolf was allowed to take a drop for an unplayable lie. pic.twitter.com/aMmb4imJLj

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

Strong par save from the water. 💦

@MaxHoma23 remains just three back.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/CZbGCxu8AB

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

Quite the line.

159 yards left to the hole after this tee shot from @McIlroyRory at No. 6.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/QpzES7NcfR

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

It's also working for Chez Reavie.

He moves comfortably inside the projected cut line after this eagle at 6. pic.twitter.com/faXfapHUJ7

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

Last year's Arnold Palmer Invitational champion, Tyrell Hatton put together an epic stretch of four consecutive birdies to end his round safely inside the cut line (two over par). It was a much-needed recovery to keep his weekend alive after struggling with a first-round 77 on Thursday. 

The defending champ doing everything he can to make the weekend.

A chip-in and back-to-back birdies move @TyrrellHatton inside the projected cut line @APinv.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/UZLdrEHL6W

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 5, 2021

Patrick Reed wasn't as lucky. The No. 9 golfer in the world finished three over and will head home early. He's joined by Shane Lowry (five over), Graeme McDowell (five over), Billy Horschel (five over) and Marc Leishman (five over) among those cut on Friday. 

The weekend will focus once again on golf's emerging stars. How they handle that pressure may say plenty about their chances of capturing a major tournament win this year with The Masters only a month away. 

Corey Conners and Rory McIlroy are the co-leaders through the first round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club and Lodge near Orlando, Florida.

Conners and McIlroy carded six-under 66s to hold a one-shot edge on Bryson DeChambeau. Three golfers are tied for fourth at four under.

           

Arnold Palmer Invitational Leaderboard

T1. Corey Conners (-6)

T1. Rory McIlroy (-6)

3. Bryson DeChambeau (-5)

T4. Jason Kokrak (-4)

T4. Byeong Hun An (-4)

T4. Sebastian Munoz (-4)

Full leaderboard available via PGATour.com

           

Conners couldn't have envisaged a better start. He opened the tournament with back-to-back-to-back birdies and improved to four under with a birdie on No. 15. 

The 29-year-old Canadian immediately followed up with an eagle on the 16th hole. He got 329 yards off the tee and got his approach to within six feet of the flag to set up a straightforward eagle putt.

180 to the hole. Water guarding the green. @CoreConn takes dead aim and a share of the lead. 🦅 #AonRiskReward pic.twitter.com/UaKZu95sSN

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 4, 2021

Conners only briefly held a share of the lead before encountering a setback with a bogey on No. 18. Still, he had nine more holes to get the two shots necessary to overtake McIlroy. He moved back into a tie for first with a birdie on No. 3 and claimed the lead all for himself on No. 6.

Dialed in.

The lead is 1 and it belongs to @CoreConn. #QuickHits pic.twitter.com/7tN2SSlT9S

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 4, 2021

Just when he looked poised to head into the clubhouse at seven under, Conners three-putted on No. 9 and settled for a bogey.

McIlroy walked up to the No. 10 tee at 8:06 a.m. ET, which allowed him to set the tone early on.

He started a bit slowly, earning birdies on No. 14 and 17 but dropping a stroke with a bogey on No. 18 before making the turn to his back nine. That's where the four-time major champion caught fire. McIlroy reeled off five straight birdies to surge up the leaderboard.

The hot stretch began with a 55-foot birdie putt on the par-three second hole.

A bit of luck is in the air @APInv. ⛱@McIlroyRory drains a 55-footer with a smile. 😁#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/XtxEIOivzF

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 4, 2021

Last four holes for @McIlroyRory:

Birdie
Birdie
Birdie
Birdie

He leads @APInv.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/Czm1gKHfZt

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 4, 2021

Tiger Woods has won this event eight times, and McIlroy explained after his round how he attempted to follow the blueprint set by the legend.

"I've watched Tiger enough here over the years," he told reporters. "And the way he played this course was he played it very conservatively, he took care of the par-fives, and that was usually good enough to get the job done. So, (I) sort of take a little bit of a leaf out of his book."

DeChambeau did his best to keep pace with McIlroy and would've had a share of the lead were it not for a bogey on No. 2.

The 2020 U.S. Open champion performed as expected. He averaged 302.7 yards on his drives, 10th-best in the field and is first in strokes gained off the tee (2.737), per PGATour.com.

Update: Not today. But not a bad "lay up." pic.twitter.com/7TR7RfGcXk

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 4, 2021

If DeChambeau can be better with his putter (1.643 putts per GIR) on Friday, he's likely to end the second round atop the leaderboard.

Jordan Spieth's round encapsulated his season as he showed flashes of the golfer who earned four top-five major finishes in the same year while also displaying the inconsistency that has caused his form to plummet.

Spieth was sitting at three under through seven holes after an eagle on No. 16. He was initially dismayed by his second-shot approach, only to watch it bounce to within 20 feet of the cup.

Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. 🤷‍♂️

Eagle from @JordanSpieth moves him into the co-lead. 🦅#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/kK5BB9O2ZF

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 4, 2021

The 27-year-old then bogeyed the 18th hole and saw his two birdies on the back nine canceled out by a pair of bogeys.

Spieth is at least within striking distance of Conners. The same can't be said of Hideki Matsuyama, Rickie Fowler, Tyrrell Hatton and Francesco Molinari, all of whom will have a fight on their hands just to make the cut. Matsuyama is tied for 87th at three over, while Fowler (four over), Hatton (five over) and Molinari (six over) are even further back.