"Was he behind Patrick Cantlay?" – Fans react to Rory McIlroy's group taking over 4 hours to finish Round 1 of the Open Championship 2025

The 2025 Open Championship has kicked off at Royal Portrush, and the first round has been concluded. On day one, Rory McIlroy’s group reportedly had a slow play issue, and fans reacted to it online.

The 153rd Open Championship features a star-studded field of 156 players. Grand Slam winner Rory McIlroy was scheduled to tee off by 10:10 a.m. ET alongside Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood. However, they reportedly took four hours to play 11 holes at Royal Portrush.

One fan on X reacted to reports of McIlroy’s slow play, asking if he was behind Patrick Cantlay. Notably, the latter has been famously criticized for being slow on the course.

The fan wrote,

“Was he behind [Patrick] Cantlay?”

Another fan commented,

“That's crazy!”

One fan highlighted the ever-persistent problem of slow play which has been a recurrent issue this year.

“Pace of play has been a problem in every major thus far.” “Why did it take this long? That’s the issue to look at,” another fan asked.

One user empathized with McIlroy’s group, saying that they probably had to wait for other players, which is why they were slow.

“McIlroy’s group must have been waiting 10 or 15 minutes on the tee at the 12th hole today, it was horribly slow. Felt sorry for the players, impossible to get in much rhythm on the back 9 especially. There’s no way they should be playing after 9pm.”

Another user echoed the same thought, saying,

“They are waiting on every single tee box. No idea what’s going on ahead of them but it’s been a big issue today.”

At the end of the first round of the Open Championship, Harris English took an early lead, tied with Matt Fitzpatrick, Jacob Skov Olesen, and two other golfers. Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy is at T20 on the provisional leaderboard.

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How did Rory McIlroy perform in the 2025 Open Championship, Round 1?

Rory McIlroy reacts to his shot on the 18th hole at the 2025 Open Championship - Image Source: Imagn

Rory McIlroy kicked off his first round at the Open Championship with an unfortunate bogey on the first hole. He then shot three birdies on the second, fifth, and seventh holes before heading to Royal Portrush’s back nine.

The Northern Irish golfer seemed to maintain good momentum with a birdie on the par-4 10th. However, two consecutive bogeys on the 11th and 12th threatened to tank his game. He shot another bogey on the par-4 14th and closed with a birdie on the 17th.

Rory McIlroy carded 1-under 70 at the end of his round and tied for 20th with Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm, Joaquin Niemann, Shane Lowry, and seven other golfers. He is scheduled to tee off for his second round by 5:09 a.m. E.T. alongside Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood.

Edited by Tushhita Barua