Shane Lowry has began the defence of his WGC-Bridgestone Invitational title with a first round of 76 in Ohio.
The Offaly native, who has taken a calculated risk in defending his title, instead of playing in the Open de France, lies 12 shots off the lead, in a tie for 51st place.
Six shots worse off than his opening round last year, Lowry struggled on the back-nine, shooting three consecutive bogeys. His only birdie of the day came on the second hole.
William McGirt leads the tournament by three shots. The American shot a bogey-free 64, for -6 as he looks to get the biggest win of his career. McGirt is looking to become only the second golfer to win The Memorial and the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in the same year. Tiger Woods did so on four separate occasions.
William McGirt made six birdies on Thursday, but only one came from the bunker. #ShotOfTheDay https://t.co/VgAkXQY6YY
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 30, 2016
World number one Jason Day is in a tie for second place on -3 with Ryder Cup-star Jimmy Walker and Emiliano Grillo. Jordan Spieth is in a group one shot further back on -2.
