McIlroy's anger boils over

A FRUSTRATED Rory McIlroy has tossed his club to the ground in a fit of rage during his bogey-filled opening round at the BMW PGA Championship.

Rory McIlroy

A FRUSTRATED Rory McIlroy has tossed his club to the ground in a fit of rage during his bogey-filled opening round at the BMW PGA Championship.

Unfancied pair Peter Lawrie and David Drysdale left an exasperated McIlroy and his high-ranking rivals trailing by shooting 6-under 66s to share the first-round lead at Wentworth.

Playing his first event in Europe in seven months, McIlroy was so frustrated during his round of 74 that he threw his club to the ground in despair at one point, leaving the world's top-ranked player at risk of being fined by the European Tour.

The Northern Irishman is already eight shots off the lead, with Lawrie hitting four birdies and an eagle in an error-free round and the 291st-ranked Drysdale also taking advantage of glorious afternoon conditions at Wentworth.

Second-ranked Luke Donald is in a group two shots back after a 68.

Veteran South African Ernie Els used his knowledge of a course he helped redesign to upstage Rory McIlroy. Els was his usual relaxed self in making six birdies in shooting a 68.

"It was almost perfect," said Els, who has made tweaks to certain sections of the course since last year's event.

"There's lots of scoring opportunities, more so than last year, so I think guys can go in with the mindset that if they have the right conditions, they can score a good score."

Third-ranked Lee Westwood shot a 70 to sit four strokes off the pace while playing partner Graeme McDowell ended up with a 74 after an unfortunate 8 on the par-5 last.

The 2010 US Open champion was docked two shots after his ball moved as he approached it while in the trees to the right of the fairway.

McIlroy missed the cut in his last tournament - The Players Championship at the TPC Sawgrass - and is in danger of doing the same at the European Tour's flagship event if he continues to struggle on the greens.

The 23-year-old Northern Irishman was 2 under after seven holes, following an eagle on No.4 and a birdie three holes later, but he bogeyed four holes around the turn. After playing a poor third shot on the par-5 12th, moments after seeing his second fly out of bounds, McIlroy hurled his club in frustration.

"You think about the par 5s and you should be taking advantage there," McIlroy said. "Standing on the first tee, 3 or 4 under is the worst you should be shooting."