Rory McIlroy curses first-round 74 at PGA Championship in NSFW answer

Rory McIlroy began his first round at the 2026 PGA Championship ominously with a bogey created by a wayward tee shot. He ended Thursday at Aronimink Golf Course with four bogeys in a row, and five on his final six holes, in an on-course meltdown that led him to use a single curse word to describe the experience at the start of his post-round news conference.

"S---," McIlroy declared.

The back-to-back Masters winner will need to rally just to make the cut at golf's second major of the year because he couldn't overcome a faulty driver again. McIlroy hit just five of 14 fairways on Thursday and it contributed heavily to his collapse down the stretch. He was also dealing with the effects of a bad blister that curtailed his preparation this week.

"It's been a problem all year for the most part," McIlroy told reporters. "I miss it right, and then I want to try to correct it, and then I'll overdo it, and I'll miss it left. It's a little bit of back-and-forth that way. So that's pretty frustrating, especially when I pride myself on driving the ball well."

Here's a breakdown of McIlroy's scorecard from the first round of the 2026 PGA Championship:

Rory McIlroy PGA Championship score first round

McIlroy finished with a 4-over par 74 during the first round of the 2026 PGA Championship.

Rory McIlroy PGA Championship hole by hole first round

Note: McIlroy started his first round on No. 10 at Aronimink Golf Course

1. Bogey 5
2. Birdie 3
3. Par 4
4. Par 4
5. Par 3
6. Par 4
7. Par 5
8. Par 3
9. Par 4
10. Par 4
11. Par 4
12. Par 4
13. Bogey 5
14. Birdie 2
15. Bogey 5
16. Bogey 5
17. Bogey 4
18. Bogey 6

When does Rory McIlroy tee off Friday?

McIlroy is scheduled to tee off at 2:05 p.m. ET to begin his second round at the 2026 PGA Championship.