Unai Emery said he has plenty more to offer as Aston Villa boss after being nominated for the Premier League manager of the season award.

Emery has overseen an impressive transformation at Villa Park since replacing Steven Gerrard in October last year, lifting them from fifth-bottom to the brink of European football next season.

The 51-year-old Spaniard is on a six-man shortlist for the managerial award, alongside Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola, Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta, Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi, Newcastle’s Eddie Howe and Fulham boss Marco Silva.

When asked about his nomination, Emery told a press conference: “We want to take some trophies or be respected for our work, but I’m trying to be focused every day on getting better and trying to improve.

“Our way here has only just started and I’ve only been here for 10 per cent of the time I want to be here, trying to improve, trying to build a strong project and get our objectives. For now, I’m proud of everybody here.”

Villa have won 14 and lost only six of his 26 top-flight games in charge and remain in contention for the final Europa League spot.

Emery, a four-time Europa League winner as manager with Sevilla (three times) and Villarreal, and also a runner-up with Arsenal, is renowned for an intense approach to his work.

He said: “I always try to enjoy my work, and I do enjoy it every day. I feel passion for my work.

“When we are playing and facing big challenges every week, every month, every year, you have to be very focused and spend a lot of time on getting the best results possible.

“When I can have two days off, I enjoy it and I’m trying to take my mind out of my work – not completely, but I enjoy doing different things.

“When I am focused here, preparing the training sessions, preparing for matches, trying to complete our work, of course I am spending a lot of hours here.”

Villa are level on points with seventh-placed Tottenham, who occupy the Europa Conference League berth, after last week’s 2-1 win against the Londoners and play at Champions League hopefuls Liverpool on Saturday.

Emery said he was relishing the challenge at Anfield, adding: “They have very high-level players and a good bench to use in the second half, and they also have a very good coach in (Jurgen) Klopp.

“The crowd there are supporting them a lot. That is what we are going to face. I want to play against them, preparing the match and taking our moments.

“We want to be successful, more than them in 90 minutes. That is the difficulty we are going to face. We need to be clinical.”

David Seaman tipped “best in the world” Manchester City to win the treble after their dominant 4-0 victory over Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final second leg.

FA Cup finalists and Premier League leaders City booked their place in the Champions League final on Wednesday as they bid to win the competition for the first time.

And Seaman hailed the club who he believes has what it takes to win three major trophies in one season – a feat which has not been replicated since Manchester United in 1998-99.

“Manchester City are a juggernaut of a team and possibly the best in the world at the moment,” Seaman told the PA news agency.

“We saw what they did to Real Madrid last night and you question who is going to beat them, they’re that good. It’s not just the starting 11 it’s all the others that come on who are world beaters as well.

“Yes, I do (can City win the treble). I can’t see any reason why not because the way that they’re playing and the way they’re playing against quality teams. When they beat us (Arsenal) at the Etihad I was thinking this is a really good team.

“We saw it last night against Real Madrid, (playing big teams) it doesn’t faze them anymore, it’s like they know if they play well they can beat anybody, no matter who you put in front of them if they play their game they’re going to win.”

Erling Haaland’s record-breaking debut Premier League season has seen the Norwegian striker net a staggering 36 goals in 33 appearances.

Former Arsenal and England goalkeeper Seaman lauded the 22-year-old’s impact at City since his arrival from Borussia Dortmund last summer and voiced his admiration for his quality at such a young age.

Haaland has been nominated for the Premier League Young Player of the Year award as well as Player of the Year alongside team-mate Kevin De Bruyne.

The 59-year-old who will also be goalkeeper coach for the England team in this year’s Soccer Aid, added: “I’d of loved the challenge, (to play Erling Haaland) he’s been brilliant.

“At the start of the season people were talking saying he doesn’t fit the Manchester City way of playing and now he’s scored over 50 goals (in all competitions), it’s just phenomenal.

“It’s not just the goals, it’s the way he scores them, the runs he makes and even when he makes the run and he doesn’t get the ball, he makes another run, he doesn’t throw his arms up in the air.

“He really is a quality player and for a guy of that age (22) it’s so hard to understand where he’s got all that experience and talent from. It’s just amazing that he has all this at a young age.”

This year’s Soccer Aid event will take place on June 11 at Old Trafford and Seaman is hoping for an England win having lost their last four.

“It’s always great, even though I am not playing anymore I always want to be involved.

“It’s time that England win one because it’s been a while since they’ve been on that podium with the fireworks going off.”

:: Tickets for Soccer Aid For UNICEF on Sunday 11th June 2023 at Old Trafford, are on sale via www.socceraid.org.uk/tickets with a family of four able to attend for just £60 — two adults and two children.

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has acknowledged how much of a huge loss to the club the departures of James Milner and Roberto Firmino will be.

The pair, whose signings in the summer of 2015 pre-date the arrival of current manager Jurgen Klopp by a few months, have played an integral role in their recent success.

Both will depart when their contracts expire at the end of the season as Champions League and Premier League winners but Henderson believes their importance extends beyond just on the pitch.

On Milner’s contribution, the England midfielder told the PA news agency: “A tremendous amount of value to the team.

“I think the manager said it perfectly in that we wouldn’t have achieved anything without Millie. He is such a big character and such a big leader within the team.

“It will definitely be strange not seeing him at Liverpool next season, he’s been incredible ever since he came to the club.

“He helped me a lot and other players around him and is probably taken for granted a little bit as a player from the outside but from the inside he has got so much respect from all of the players and all of the staff and we wish him all the very best in whatever his next chapter looks like.”

Firmino, who has returned to training this week after missing six matches with a muscle problem, is due a particularly emotional farewell in Liverpool’s final home match of the season against Aston Villa on Saturday.

The much-loved Brazil international travelled with the squad for Monday’s win over Leicester and the away fans dedicated more than 10 minutes of the second half to singing about him.

“He will be a huge miss also,” added Henderson, who was speaking at an NHS Big Tea event in Crewe in his role as an ambassador for NHS Charities Together.

“The good energy he gives the team is always so positive, he’s always in a good mood and smiling but his quality on the pitch is unbelievable.

“Thankfully he is back in training and hopefully he can be ready if not at the weekend then maybe the last game of the season.

“But you have seen the reception he got on Monday from the fans and rightly so. I am sure that will be the case again on Saturday.”

Luke Wood was one of the busiest cricketers on the planet this winter, but the seamer describes being back at home to kick off Lancashire’s Vitality Blast campaign as his “pride and joy”.

Wood has been all over the globe since finishing runner-up with the Lightning in last year’s competition, making his England debut in a historic tour of Pakistan, travelling to Australia as a reserve for the triumphant T20 World Cup and picking up franchise deals in the Big Bash, the UAE’s IL20 league and the Bangladesh Premier League.

It has been the most lucrative and demanding period of the 27-year-old’s career, with new experiences, new team-mates and new responsibilities to bear.

But on Saturday he will be lining up for the Red Rose against Derbyshire in Edgbaston’s ‘Blast Off’, a double-headed curtain-raiser for the white-ball season that also sees hosts Birmingham Bears take on Yorkshire.

“I’ve certainly been claiming a lot air miles. I’ve been busy, but I’m back home,” he told the PA news agency with a smile of satisfaction.

“Whenever I come back to play for Lancashire, that’s my pride and joy. This is where I earned those opportunities in the first place. After four busy months away, it’s back to reality. Being here, this is my job.

“But I’ve enjoyed that franchise circuit so much, it can only grow your game as a player. You talk about the captains, the coaches, the different ideas…you’re learning all the time.

“My international career might be limited so far but I’ve been able to play against that calibre of player regularly and I feel my game has come on so much.

“Being an overseas player is a big thing. The expectations are on you and the drive now is the same as when I’m in that overseas role. I pride myself on meeting the same expectations.”

Wood admits Lancashire are a side with some frustrations to work out, be it from last season’s finals day where they gave up a winning position to lose the title to Hampshire or this year’s record of five consecutive draws in the LV= Insurance County Championship.

“You can see as a club we are hungry for a win,” he added.

“There aren’t too many draws in T20 cricket thankfully and we want to get the ball rolling. Coming second last year has almost given us a bigger drive for the Blast because finishing runner-up feels the same as losing.

“It’s always disappointing to lose a final, but it gives you a bit of extra motivation. We felt like we were cruising for a long time but you know it’s never over in T20. Next time is for us, I hope.”

Derbyshire’s head coach Mickey Arthur is another man with unfinished business in the competition.

His side enjoyed a strong run in the North Group of last year’s Blast, but dropped the ball in their quarter-final against Somerset as they were rolled over for 74 chasing 266.

“We did fall off the rails in the quarter-final but we’re better for that experience,” Arthur told PA.

“It did leave a bad taste, but it’s easy to forget we won nine games in a row against some big teams. The guys have learned. You can’t go to a supermarket and and buy experience, you’ve got to go through it.

“Our recruitment has been good too and I really think we’ve got a side who can shake up a couple of teams.”

World number one Jon Rahm faced an uphill battle to make the halfway cut on day two of the 105th US PGA Championship at Oak Hill.

Seeking back-to-back major titles following his Masters triumph at Augusta National last month, Rahm birdied his opening hole in the first round before slumping to a six-over-par 76.

US Open champion and playing partner Matt Fitzpatrick failed to record a single birdie as he recorded the same score to trail clubhouse leader Bryson DeChambeau by 10 shots.

DeChambeau’s 66 gave him a one-shot lead over world number two Scottie Scheffler, Dustin Johnson and Corey Conners, although Eric Cole had reached five under after 14 holes when play was suspended for the day due to darkness.

The start of play had been delayed by an hour and 50 minutes on Thursday morning due to frost.

Rory McIlroy fought back from three over par after nine holes to post a 71 despite struggling with an unspecified illness.

Quote of the day

Keegan Bradley reflects on a rollercoaster opening round of 68.

Shot of the day

Scott Stallings began his round from the 10th and holed his second shot of the day from 128 yards for an eagle.

Round of the day

Although DeChambeau shot the lowest score, arguably the best round of the day was a bogey-free effort from Scottie Scheffler.

Statistic of the day

World number one and Masters champion Jon Rahm struggled to an opening 76.

Hardest hole (*round incomplete)

The 481-yard ninth hole yielded just seven birdies and played to an average of 4.448.

Easiest hole (*round incomplete)

Despite measuring 617 yards, the par-five fourth hole played to an average of 4.873, with Rory McIlroy reaching the green with a long iron to set up one of the 32 birdies made.

Weather forecast

Much warmer temperatures can be expected on Friday ahead of an approaching low-pressure system and associated cold front that will move through the region on Saturday. This will bring a good chance for rain Friday night through the day on Saturday. Drier conditions return by Saturday evening with partly cloudy skies and mild temperatures expected for Sunday.

Tom Kim admitted he missed the anonymity of playing in tournaments without widespread television coverage after an embarrassing incident at Oak Hill.

Kim unwittingly provided the viral moment of day one of the US PGA Championship after an errant tee shot on the par-four sixth, his 15th of the day.

The world number 19 thought he could play his ball from the edge of the hazard but discovered the ground was considerably softer and muddier than he anticipated.

Television footage captured Kim emerging with his legs covered in mud and kept rolling as he decided he may as well find a cleaner part of the creek in which to wash his legs and trousers.

“I think the world has seen enough already of it,” Kim joked as he was shown the footage while speaking to Sky Sports following a round of 73.

“But I hit it over in the mud and I was hoping I was able to find it. I wasn’t able to find it and there was a moment where my legs were inside the mud and I wasn’t able to get myself out for a minute.

“I was talking to Joe (Skovron, his caddie) and said I might as well go in the water and wash myself off and I took a bath over there. I’ve had better days for sure.”

The incident took place shortly before play was suspended late on Thursday evening and Kim had hoped there would be no footage, adding: “I miss the days when I played on a Tour without cameras.”

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has told his players their resounding Premier League victory over Brighton will count for nothing if they do not beat Leicester to clinch a place in the Champions League.

The Magpies survived a test of their top-four credentials at St James’ Park on Thursday evening when they defended a 2-1 lead in the face of a determined Seagulls backlash before eventually killing off the game to win 4-1.

As a result, they climbed four points clear of fifth-placed Liverpool with both clubs having two games left, and will play in the Champions League next season if either the Reds lose at home to Aston Villa on Saturday or they beat the Foxes on Tyneside two days later.

Asked if he could put into words how big a win it was, Howe said: “It’s a huge win for us.

“I know it’s a bit of a cliche, but it won’t mean anything if we don’t back it up on Monday night and that’s an incredibly difficult game. After the high of today and what we’ve given in the match, we know we have to repeat it.

“Nothing is given to you in the Premier League. We know Leicester’s qualities, so we have to be very calm, recover well and we have to have the same focus and mentality that we had today.”

Newcastle looked to be cruising to victory when Deniz Undav’s own goal and a second from Dan Burn sent them in at the break 2-0 ahead, although Undav made amends within six minutes of the restart to spark something of a fightback before Callum Wilson and Bruno Guimaraes struck at the death.

Howe’s side cannot now finish any lower than fifth and are assured of Europa League football at worst, but the 45-year-old is still not allowing himself to get excited.

He said: “Honestly I don’t [get excited]. I take great pride in the performance tonight. I’ll go back home, watch the game and I’ll be, I hope, really proud of what I see, really enthused by the players delivering a brilliant product to watch for our supporters.

“The excitement stuff doesn’t really exist in this job because you know there’s just another game and another challenge and it won’t stop even if we hit our goal. There’ll just be another challenge and it will hit us in the face next season.”

Liverpool’s seven-game winning run had piled the pressure on the Magpies, although it is Jurgen Klopp’s men who now have little or no margin for error.

However, Howe said: “We’re not looking at any other teams or trying to make any sort of statement, we just needed to win for us and that will be the same against Leicester.”

For Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi, there was disappointment as he was forced to make changes to the side which beat Arsenal at the weekend, although they too have a prize within their grasp.

The Seagulls are currently sixth on 58 points, one clear of Tottenham and Aston Villa but with a game in hand.

De Zerbi, whose team host Southampton and Manchester City before finishing the campaign with a trip to Villa, said: “I think we will be able to qualify anyway for Europe. We have to win two games. We will play in our stadium and with our fans in our stadium, we play with 12 players.

“It is a difficult period, but to qualify for Europe, we have to be stronger than everything because if we do, we reach a historic target, a big target, and we have right motivation and energy.”

A year after withdrawing before the start of the US PGA Championship following hand surgery, Bryson DeChambeau set the clubhouse target on a weather-delayed opening day at Oak Hill.

DeChambeau carded six birdies and two bogeys in an opening four-under-par 66 on a course that lived up to comparisons with Winged Foot, the venue for his dominant US Open victory in 2020.

Much has happened to the 29-year-old since then, including a feud with Brooks Koepka, being labelled an eight-year-old by his equipment manufacturer after complaining his driver “sucks” during the Open Championship and abandoning his unhealthy bulking regime.

DeChambeau also joined LIV Golf last year, five months after pledging his loyalty to the PGA Tour, while Thursday’s round included accidentally hitting fellow competitor Kenny Pigman – who was on the 18th tee – with a wild approach to the 17th.

“It’s a fantastic round of golf at Oak Hill,” DeChambeau said. “It’s a prestigious place. Very difficult golf course.

“As I was looking at it throughout the week, I’m like, man, I don’t know how shooting under par is even possible out here on some of the golf holes.

“But, luckily, I was able to play some really good golf, hit a lot of fairways, did my job and made some putts.

“It’s a different test (to Winged Foot) and a test that I’m willing take on. If you’re driving it well and hitting your irons well, you can play out here, but it can get pretty nasty pretty quick if you’re not hitting it straight.”

A combination of injuries, loss of form and joining LIV Golf – which cannot award world ranking points for its events – means DeChambeau has fallen from a career-high of fourth in the standings to 214th.

And he admitted there were times when he doubted whether he would ever be able to get back to the top of the game.

“How serious were they? There were times I doubted myself, severe doubts, but never got to a point where I was done. Maybe for like a day I was done, I’m just going to take a day off, whatever, and the next day I came back.

“The emotions have definitely fluctuated pretty high and pretty low, thinking I have something and it fails and going back and forth.

“It’s humbling. Golf, and life, always has a good way of kicking you on your you-know-what when you are on your high horse. It’s nice to feel this today.”

Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas will clash in the semi-finals of the Italian Open in Rome.

Both eased through their quarter-finals on Thursday, with third seed Medvedev, who had never won a match at the Foro Italico prior to the start of the tournament, ending the run of qualifier Yannick Hanfmann with a 6-2 6-2 victory.

“I remember sitting here before the tournament and saying how good I felt in practice,” the Russian told reporters in the Italian capital.

“It’s always tricky because then you can lose first round against a great opponent and you’re going to be like, ‘Yeah, well, why did I say this? Better shut up.’ That’s how I felt. I’m happy I managed to transfer this onto the tennis court.”

Tsitsipas had to wait until the night session to take on Borna Coric, and the Greek produced a fine display to see off the 15th seed 6-3 6-4.

It will be a 12th meeting between regular rivals Tsitsipas and Medvedev. Medvedev leads 7-4 but Tsitsipas has won the last two and also beat the Russian at the French Open two years ago.

A vote to approve the record sale agreement of the Washington Commanders will not take place next week at the NFL's owners meetings.

NFL executive vice president Jeff Miller told reporters in a conference call the league will provide an update on the proposed ownership change at next week's meetings in Minneapolis, though a formal vote for approval will take place at a later time.

Earlier this month, embattled owner Dan Snyder agreed to sell the Commanders to a group led by Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Josh Harris for $6.05 billion, the largest purchase price for a professional sports franchise in North America.

"The league staff and finance committee will continue to review the details of the transaction," Miller said on Thursday. "We will provide membership with an update in Minnesota."

The Harris group, which includes NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson, contains multiple limited partners which must be vetted by the NFL before a vote can proceed. The sale will require the approval of 24 of the league's 32 owners to become official.

"Any transaction like this deserves due process, and we will do it as expeditiously as we can. [We have] plenty of people working on it, and doing so is a priority," Miller added.

Snyder and his wife, Tanya, announced in November they would be putting the historic franchise up for sale following a congressional investigation into allegations of workplace misconduct and financial misdeeds.

The NFL launched an additional probe headed by former U.S. Attorney Mary Jo White, which is still ongoing.

The Snyder family purchased the Commanders, then known as the Redskins, from the estate of Jack Kent Cooke in 1999. After years of opposing changing the team's controversial nickname, Snyder finally relented in 2020 amid heavy pressure from activist groups and corporate sponsors.

Rory McIlroy battled illness and a poor start to remain in contention for a third US PGA title as Bryson DeChambeau set the clubhouse target at Oak Hill.

On a course which has drawn comparisons to Winged Foot, the venue for his US Open triumph in 2020, a slimmed-down DeChambeau still possessed enough power to post six birdies and two bogeys in an opening 66.

That gave DeChambeau a one-shot lead over world number two Scottie Scheffler and Corey Conners, with Viktor Hovland, Ryan Fox and Keegan Bradley on two under par.

McIlroy fought back from three over par after nine holes to return a 71, while Masters champion and world number one Jon Rahm surprisingly slumped to a six-over-par 76.

Following a delay of almost two hours due to overnight frost, Oak Hill member McIlroy had started from the 10th hole with five straight pars before badly mishitting his tee shot on the 15th to find a bunker 30 yards short of the pin.

McIlroy hit a good bunker shot to nine feet but was unable to convert the par putt and also failed to get up and down from sand on the 17th, before taking a swipe at the tee marker on the 18th following an errant drive.

The four-time major winner looked certain to drop another shot after firing his third to the second over the green, but holed from 35 feet up a steep slope for an unlikely par and then hit a brilliant tee shot to two feet on the next.

“It was massive,” McIlroy said. “I was sort of just hoping to get down in two and make bogey and go to the third hole at four over par.

“When you walk off the green three over and then you hit a tee shot like that, all of a sudden the pendulum swings or momentum goes the other way and you feel like you’re right back in the tournament.

“Depending on what happens over the next three days and what I go on to do, I may look back at that shot as being the sort of turning point of the week.”

McIlroy reduced the 617-yard fourth hole to a drive and long iron to set up his second birdie of the day and although he three-putted the next, a birdie on the eighth helped complete a battling round despite being under the weather.

“I’m fighting something,” McIlroy confirmed.

“I thought I got a great night’s sleep last night and I looked at my Whoop (personal fitness monitor) and I was 22 per cent recovery, and my skin temperature was 3.5 degrees higher than what it’s been.

“But I actually feel better today than I felt yesterday, so plenty of water and a bit of rest, I’ll be fine.”

Rahm had started his day with a birdie on the 10th, his opening hole, but dropped five shots in six holes around the turn and also made a double bogey on the seventh.

“Obviously the first six holes of the day I played really good,” Rahm said.

“Put myself in a good spot and after that I found myself battling. Couldn’t find the fairway and the fairways that I missed cost me bogeys.”

Play had been scheduled to get under way at 7am local time (1200 BST), but predictions of cold conditions overnight proved accurate and led to tee times being delayed by an hour and 50 minutes.

The possibility of weather delays had been on the cards since the US PGA was moved from August to May in 2019, with Oak Hill having already been selected as this year’s venue.

Callum Wilson and Bruno Guimaraes served up a grandstand finish to take Newcastle to the brink of Champions League football with a resounding victory over Brighton.

Having seen Deniz Undav drag the Seagulls back into the game after his own goal and Dan Burn’s towering header had given the Magpies a 2-0 half-time lead, Wilson scored his 18th of the season and then set up Guimaraes to wrap up a 4-1 win at the death in front of a delirious crowd of 52,122 at St James’ Park.

Eddie Howe’s men will be assured of a top-four finish if Liverpool lose to Aston Villa on Saturday – even a draw might ultimately prove enough as a result of their superior goal difference – but can complete the job themselves in any case if they beat struggling Leicester on Tyneside on Monday evening.

For much of the game, this was not the Brighton which effectively ended Arsenal’s title challenge on Sunday, partly because of the absence of Levi Colwill, Alexis Mac Allister, Julio Enciso and Evan Ferguson from the starting line-up, but largely as a result of the relentless pressure exerted by their opponents.

Joe Willock saw an early cross hacked away to Miguel Almiron, whose shot was blocked at source as the Magpies found their rhythm, and Fabian Schar drilled a ninth-minute free-kick straight at the grateful Jason Steele.

Willock fired just wide from Almiron’s pull-back seconds later, and the Paraguay international cleared the target by some distance from a tight angle after the former Arsenal midfielder had returned the favour.

Such was the Magpies’ early intensity that the Seagulls were struggling to play their way out of their own half, much to manager Roberto De Zerbi’s agitation, although keeper Nick Pope was tested for the first time by Danny Welbeck’s 16th-minute attempt after Kaoru Mitoma had picked him out.

But the pressure finally told with 23 minutes gone when Trippier drilled the latest of a series of corners to the near post and in his attempt to clear it, Undav could only glance the ball into his own net.

Burn saw a sharply-executed 34th-minute shot on the turn deflected wide after the visitors failed to deal with another Trippier corner and although Mitoma chanced his arm with an ambitious 37th-minute strike which failed to engage Pope, Newcastle extended their lead deep into added time.

With Joelinton still seething at a Moises Caicedo challenge which went unpunished by referee Robert Jones, Tripper took full advantage of a decision which did go his side’s way seconds later, curling a free-kick on to the head of Burn, who powered it past the helpless Steele.

Almiron passed up a chance to put the game beyond the visitors within five minutes of the restart when he shot straight at Steele from Willock’s knock-down, and the miss proved costly within seconds when Undav ran on to Billy Gilmour’s through-ball and beat Pope to make amends for his earlier contribution.

Mac Allister, Enciso and Ferguson were swiftly thrown into the mix and just as quickly, Willock departed clutching his hamstring and Elliot Anderson joined the fray.

But there was no let-up as the home side saw penalty appeals waved away after Burn appeared to have his shirt tugged and Steele made a superb save to keep out Alexander Isak’s header.

Enciso glanced Caicedo’s cross wide of Pope’s far post as the game became increasingly open, but the Magpies launched a devastating late assault to wrap up the win.

Wilson added a third when he rounded off an 89th-minute counter-attack sparked by Almiron before setting up Guimaraes to make it 4-1 in injury-time.

New Zealand’s Ryan Fox admitted his impressive opening round came as a surprise after detailing his extraordinary build up to the 105th US PGA Championship.

Fox fell ill during his Masters debut last month and withdrew after just nine holes of the following week’s RBC Heritage before flying home to Auckland.

The 36-year-old was diagnosed with pneumonia and took two weeks to recover, just in time to welcome the arrival of his second daughter Margot.

After enjoying a few days at home with his family, Fox then flew back to the United States and only arrived in Rochester on Monday morning, before also having to deal with an overnight frost which delayed Thursday’s early starters.

“It’s been an interesting last month,” Fox, who won twice on the DP World Tour last season, said with considerable understatement after carding a two-under-par 68.

“At the Masters I was pretty sick on the weekend. Tried to play Hilton Head, withdrew from there after nine holes, just feeling awful. Got home and got told I caught pneumonia, which pretty much explained why I felt so bad.

“Basically as soon as I got over that, our daughter was born, which was just over two weeks ago now. So I had a few sleepless nights and not a lot of practice.

“One of the days I was supposed to go to practice, Auckland flooded for the third time this year. So I think I drove around Auckland (covering) 27 kilometres in four hours in chaos.

“It wasn’t quite the ideal preparation for a major, but I was kind of hoping the fact I needed a break after a busy start to the year and being mentally fresh would have been important this week.

“It’s pretty surprising to have four weeks off and shoot 68, especially when the course is pretty brutal if you are out of position.”

As one of the early starters Fox left his hotel at 5.30am, meaning he only received notification of the delayed start when he arrived at the course.

“I was due to see my physio at 6am and I was going to have breakfast beforehand. Just as I got to the golf course, I got the text,” Fox added.

“I certainly would have liked another hour and a bit in bed, but I can go and have a pretty nice nap this afternoon, I think.”