British Open, Royal Portrush
Digest more
Five players tied for the lead at 4-under 67, the largest logjam after 18 holes of the British Open since there was a six-way tie in 1938.
Five players opened with rounds of 4-under 67 at Royal Portrush and the SI Golf team debates whether the major champion in the group has an edge.
The "Golden Bear" and 18-time major winner won the first of his three Opens and completed the first of his three career grand slams along the southeastern Scottish coast in 1966, then called the par-71 layout "the best golf course in Britain."
Rory McIlroy shot 1-under 70 in the first round of the British Open at Royal Portrush that is also serving as a homecoming for the Northern Irish star.
9h
Golf Digest on MSNBritish Open 2025: Major winner's wife gives him specially-marked golf balls for Royal PortrushAfter starting his Thursday with an eagle on the second hole en route to a first-round 67, Matt Fitzpatrick is right at the top of the British Open leaderboard. A four-under start at Royal Portrush is nothing to sneeze at,
Explore more
The R&A posted its local rules and added a second document for "additional local rules" at the 2025 British Open, one of which pertains to Spidercam.
The British Open is underway at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland. Two-time champion Padraig Harrington of Ireland had the honor of the opening tee shot. Xander Schauffele of the United States is trying to become the first player since Harrington in 2007-08 to win the Open in successive years.
Former PGA Tour pro Johnson Wagner apologized to the British Open crowd after skulling a shot into the grandstand during a live demo.
At rainy Royal Portrush, caddies shield golf balls, not players. Learn why, and how water changes shots and spin in wet conditions.
Fickle weather and funny bounces are classic features of links golf and it makes the British Open a test of the mind as much as anything else.