Rory McIlroy struggled with the putting gremlins but still opened with a three-under 69 in the WGC-Workday Championship at The Concession in Florida.

The world No 8 cruised around the back nine three-under 33 but despite swapping his TaylorMade Spider X for a TP Juno, he lost confidence from short-range coming home.

The Co Down man missed three par putts inside five feet as he sandwiched birdies at the second and third between bogeys at the first (three-putt), fourth and fifth.

While he steadied the ship by making a six-footer for par at the sixth and an eight-footer for birdie at the next, he missed a six-footer at the eighth and another chance from 15 feet at the last.

Scores

“Of course it’s frustrating because you come off the course thinking you should be three or four shots lower than you were,” McIlroy said. “But I’ve just got to keep putting the work in. I’ve just got to keep doing this stuff and hopefully it finds its way in there.

“I holed some good puts out there today —it sounds as if I didn’t hole anything— but I just missed a few that I should’ve holed.”

He ended his day tied for 13th, three shots behind Webb Simpson and England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick, whose six-under 66’s gave them a one-stroke lead over Brooks Koepka, Billy Horschel, Sergio Garcia and Kevin Kisner as world number one Dustin Johnson struggled from the tee and shot 77.

Shane Lowry drove brilliantly but made little on the greens and paid for a bunkered approach to his final hole as he finished with a bogey for an even-par 72 that left him tied 35th.

Meanwhile, Seamus Power shot a three-under 69 and Pádraig Harrington a 70 despite the loss of his caddie to illness in the blustery Puerto Rico Open.

Scores

After missing his first three cuts this year, Power (33) started on the 10th but mixed three bogeys with two birdies to turn in one-over 37 at Grand Reserve Country Club.

But he raced home in 32 in winds gusting to 20mph as he birdied the second, third, fifth and ninth for a three-under 69 that left him tied 25th, four shots behind Tommy Gainey, who shot a seven-under 65 to lead by a shot from a seven-man posse.

After missing the cut in the Genesis Invitational following his Covid-enforced withdrawal at Pebble Beach, Ryder Cup skipper Harrington made five birdies and three bogeys in two-under 70 to share 37th with a member of the resort staff stepping in to carry his bag.

Regular caddie Ronan Flood felt dizzy and was last night awaiting results of a Covid-19 test having opted to sit out the first round as a precaution, revealing: “It’s unlikely to be Covid but I had to be cautious in the current times.”

On the LPGA Tour, Leona Maguire opened her season by making five birdies in a three-under 69 to lie just three shots behind leader Lydia Ko in the Gainbridge LPGA at Lake Nona.

She was tied for 11th behind Ko whose 65 gave her a two-shot lead over Anna Koeretz Madsen and Nelly Korda as Annika Sorenstam shot 75 and Stephanie Meadow a disappointing 76. Scores