Rory McIlroy had an eventful first day at The Open at Royal Troon, and although he had a strong start, he slipped a little on the back nine to eventually card a two under-par 69.
Speaking in the wake of his first day, the Hollywood native said that he was happy with a solid start despite the slightly shaky finish, and that "It would have been nice to get a birdie on the last three, I felt like I gave myself a couple of good chances, but a 69 is a solid start, I don't have too many complaints."
However, he noted that, with the conditions being idyllic today, there was a window to really make some headway which he may have missed.
"It's the Open Championship, you know coming in here that you're going to have to battle the elements somewhat," said McIlroy. "As I said, it's nice to not be too far out of the lead after day one, depending on what some of the guys do this afternoon. You're looking at something at about eight or ten under par that might win this tournament, and I feel like I've got off to a good start in trying to achieve that."
After stating earlier this week that he would only be watching the "sports that matter" at the Olympics, McIlroy has been in the firing line, but he was clear that he wasn't going to row back on what he said for any reason.
"I've been very fortunate to do what I've done in golf, and I feel like I've used that success in a positive way. I've no regrets about where I stand on certain things, but I wish I would have maybe just elaborated a bit more on what I said."
Signalling that there might be a bit of a change from McIlroy in terms of the side of himself that he shows to the media, he added that "it's my opinion and I think my opinion is shared by a few people. Some people may think it's wrong and that's fine. I've spent seven years trying to please everyone and I've figured out that I can't really do that, so I might as well be true to myself."
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