Rory McIlroy trails by two as Scottie Scheffler holds share of lead

Masters champion McIlroy had finished tied for 19th at the US Open over a punishing Oakmont course – but ended the weekend on a positive following a three-under-par final round, which was the joint best of the day.
The Northern Irishman – who saw his driver ruled as 'non-conforming' ahead of last month's PGA Championship before then missing the cut at the Canadian Open – had been looking to build some momentum at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell as focus turns towards the Open at Royal Portrush.
Rory McIlroy made an impressive start in Cromwell (Jessica Hill/AP)
World number two McIlroy landed a birdie at the second and then sank two more ahead of the turn at the final PGA Tour Signature Event of 2025.
After picking up another couple, a further birdie at the 17th – from the best part of 30 feet having hit a fine recovery shot out of the rough and over the water onto the green – saw him finish six under with 64 to sit in a tie for second, two shots behind early clubhouse leader Austin Eckroat.
American Eckroat hit a fine eight-under round, which included an eagle at the par-three 13th and a sixth birdie at the 18th.
Scottie joins Eckroat atop the leaderboard with a 62 (-8) of his own!👏 pic.twitter.com/TtOHk1Td6p
— TravelersChamp (@TravelersChamp) June 19, 2025
Scheffler was one of the late starters paired alongside newly-crowned US Open champion JJ Spaun – who unlike his playing partner endured a perhaps expected tough round to finish three-over following successive bogeys on the closing two holes.
There was, though, no such trouble for Scheffler, who never looked back after three birdies from the opening four holes.
The American – who landed a third major title with the PGA Championship crown at Quail Hollow during May – then picked up an eagle on the 13th and another birdie at 15, before a bogey at the 17th was the only blemish on his eight-under 62.
McIlroy's playing partner Keegan Bradley is also at six-under, having dropped a shot at the 12th, alongside Wyndham Clark, the 2023 US Open champion.
'Overall it was a good start to the tournament, and I think when you're in a two-ball like that and we can sort of feed off one another a little bit too, that's nice as well,' McIlroy said after his opening round.
'I just want to see some good golf and see some better shots. I think if you concentrate on that and you are concentrating on your quality of golf and concentrating on just trying to play to the best of your ability, the result will take care of itself.
'There's no point in thinking about the result right now. I'm just trying to play as good as I can and make good swings, and if I do that enough, more than likely I'll find myself in a position to have a chance to win.'
England's Tommy Fleetwood carded a first round of 66 to sit in a group tied for sixth.
Scotland's Robert MacIntyre, runner-up at Oakmont on Sunday, finished one over following a double-bogey six on the 17th.
Jordan Spieth WD during the first round of the Travelers Championship with a neck/upper back injury.
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) June 19, 2025
Jordan Spieth withdrew during his first round because of a neck/upper back injury.
'I may have just slept wrong and then something came along. I don't know what caused it,' he said.
'I think it was just a random one-off that unfortunately got worse and bad enough on a Thursday that I didn't feel like I could continue.'

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Reuters

22 minutes ago

• Reuters

Zverev overcomes stomach bug to set up Halle semi-final with Medvedev

June 20 (Reuters) - Alexander Zverev's quest for a first grasscourt title took an unexpected turn at the Halle Open on Friday when the German second seed was forced to sprint from court to vomit mid-match before rallying to defeat Italy's Flavio Cobolli 6-4 7-6(8). Second seed Zverev started the match on the front foot by breaking in the first game but as he was serving in the second, he requested a toilet break to throw up and bolted down the tunnel. Once he returned, Zverev struggled with the intensity at first and clearly looked unwell, bending over in exhaustion after points and gasping for breath after a marathon rally. "I felt fine before the match. Then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, I felt really, really bad. I felt ill, went to throw up and then 15 minutes later I felt OK again," Zverev said. "I don't know what it was, I've never experienced that before. I hope I'll be fine in the next couple of hours when the adrenaline settles. After that I think it was a pretty good match." Although nowhere near 100%, Zverev held serve as he slowly drew on his reserves of energy, firing his first ace of the match on set point. The second set was an even contest as Cobolli relied on his movement to continue troubling Zverev, but the German eventually triumphed in a close tiebreak, finishing the match with 22 winners and 12 points at the net. The semi-final pits Zverev against Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev, a familiar foe who holds a 12-7 head-to-head advantage and has won their last three meetings. "I think he's the guy that I played the most in my career. I'm looking forward to it," Zverev added. "A lot of things happened in the last 18 months. He's one of my toughest opponents in my career. It's going to be a great match and I'm really looking forward to facing him." Medvedev moved into the semi-finals with a 6-4 6-3 victory over American Alex Michelsen despite suffering a nosebleed in the second set which forced the 2021 Halle runner-up to take a medical timeout. However, the Russian served well to deny his opponent a single break point opportunity and wrapped up the contest in 85 minutes as he reached the last four without dropping a set, with the only thing causing problems being the shadows on the court. "The shadows on the court made the conditions quite difficult. It took some time to get used to it. It was then better in the second set," said Medvedev, who will return to the top 10 ahead of Wimbledon.

The Guardian

26 minutes ago

• The Guardian

London City Lionesses make statement signing of Daniëlle van de Donk

London City Lionesses have made a statement of intent following promotion to the Women's Super League by completing the signing of Netherlands midfielder Daniëlle van de Donk. The independently-run club, who will play in the WSL for the first time next season after winning the Women's Championship title in May, have acquired the 33-year-old on a free transfer from record eight-time European champions Lyon, recently renamed as OL Lyonnes, following the conclusion of her contract. OL Lyonnes are, like London City Lionesses, owned by the American businesswoman, Michele Kang. Van de Donk won the WSL title winner with Arsenal in 2019 and was also part of the Netherlands squad that won the 2017 Women's European Championship and reached the final of the 2019 World Cup. She has signed a two-year contract with London City, who have made no secret of their ambitions to disrupt the established big-name of women's football in England. 'I'm feeling really good,' said Van de Donk, who is London City's first signing of the transfer window. 'It's such a nice environment to be in, the club really appeals to me, it reminds me of a little family, and I want to be a part of it. The project that London City have, it's different but in a good way. London City have to battle for everything and that's my style.' News of Van de Donk's return to the WSL came as the Football Association formally approved the expansion of the division from 12 to 14 clubs from the 2026-27 season.

Daily Record

2 hours ago

• Daily Record

Hamza Igamane must be sold by Rangers after transfer intel leak as 49ers 'refresh' requires major jolt

The Moroccan striker is said to boast suitors in the Premier League including Everton Rangers new owners should cash in on Hamza Igamane this summer to fund a summer rebuild at Ibrox. That is according to Pat Nevin - who reckons that the American revolution at Ibrox could need more spending power with Lyall Cameron the only new face in the building so far. The Moroccan has impressed during his first season in the Scottish Premiership netting 16 goals after a £1.7million arrival from AS FAR. Just 12 months on, the 22-year-old has been linked with the likes of Everton, Tottenham, West Ham, Newcastle United, Bournemouth, Brentford and Fulham - with Premier League scouts reportedly on red alert. It comes after Nevin claimed the Light Blues would be doing "really well" to dethrone Celtic this season after hearing intel about the figures that would be spent in the summer window. And he reckons Andrew Cavenagh and 49ers Enterprises must green light to sale to kickstart Russell Martin's squad overhaul if the likes of Everton come calling as the former Southampton boss looks to put his own stamp on the squad. Speaking to jackpot slots, the former Toffees' frontman said: "Is Hamza Igamane going to set fire to the Premier League? No. It's not like someone will be signing the next Eden Hazard. "I do think he's capable of doing a job for someone in the middle region of the division but that's probably it. "In Rangers' situation, where you've got to sign five or six players this summer, you could do with the money. 'I suppose with new owners, it means there will be a bit more available to Russell Martin but sometimes, even though you're desperate to keep one player, selling them means you can sign four more. "That's the sort of situation Rangers currently find themselves in. "It wouldn't show a lack of ambition if they sell Igamane or anything like that. It can actually help them refresh the squad and start this new era." You can get all the news you need on our dedicated Rangers and Celtic pages, and sign up to our newsletters to make sure you never miss a beat throughout the season. We're also on WhatsApp, where we bring all the latest breaking news and transfer gossip directly to your phone. Join our Rangers community here and our Celtic community here.