THE IRISH OPEN got underway this morning, and surprise surprise, so did the rain.
The heavy downpours at the K Club earlier have thankfully eased off but have left the course very soft.
Shane Lowry is the best of the Irish on one-under par, two behind the early clubhouse leaders Martin Kaymer and Ross Fisher, winner in Killarney in 2010.
Lowry moved into a share of second place when this superb approach allowed him to make birdie at the par-four sixth.
But he dropped a shot on the ninth, his final hole of the day, to finish on 71.
Pádraig Harrington suffered a disastrous start to his tournament when he carded a triple-bogey and a double-bogey within his first six holes.
And although the three-time Major champion steadied the ship and shot level par for the remainder of his round, he will need an improved showing on Friday to move from +4 and give himself a chance of making the cut.
Weather conditions have improved and it’s dry at the minute but light showers are expected over the course of the afternoon.
Tournament host Rory McIlroy teed off at 1.25pm alongside Andy Sullivan and defending champion Soren Kjeldsen of Denmark.
Click here for the live leaderboard >
The42 is on Snapchat! Tap the button below on your phone to add!
