Rory McIlroy is just one shot off the lead at the Players Championship after shooting a five-under 67 in his opening round, but the Northern Irishman believes he got lucky

If you watched how Rory McIlroy birdied the 18th hole on Thursday at The Players, you will likely remember his closing three for quite some time. After missing the short grass again off the tee, McIlroy’s ball settled down in the pine straw to the right of the fairway.

Lucas Glover, J.J. Spaun and Camilo Villegas each shot a 6-under 66, but the top of the leaderboard is jammed after Thursday.