Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele have broken away from the field after two rounds of the Tour Championship, with Scheffler at 19 under and Schauffele the only player within six strokes, sitting at 17 under.

Scheffler, the world number one, started the season's final event at 10 under due to finishing atop the FedEx Cup standings, and he established a five-stroke lead in his first trip around East Lake Golf Club with a five-under 65.

He was strong again on Friday to post a bogey-free 66, but his lead was trimmed by three shots as second-placed Schauffele produced six birdies and an eagle with one bogey to shoot 63, one shot off the round of the day.

The 18th hole could end up being a turning point in the event, as Scheffler opted to play it safe on the par five while Schauffele decided to take on the water to make the green from his second shot. It resulted in a two-stroke swing as Schauffele eagled the last, cutting the deficit in half from four shots to two.

Only three players posted Friday scores better than 65, with Jon Rahm flying up the leaderboard into outright third place at 13 under after his 63. His eight birdies were the most in the round.

The rest of the field is at least seven shots back from the lead, with Patrick Cantlay and Im Sung-jae tied for fourth at 12 under, Joaquin Niemann alone in sixth at 11 under, and Rory McIlroy has sole possession of seventh at 10 under.

The round of the day went to Max Homa, who went bogey-free with six birdies and an eagle to post a 62 for the best 18 of the tournament so far.

After five birdies from his first eight holes, Homa rattled off seven pars in a row, before a birdie on 16 and an eagle on the last.

Matt Fitzpatrick was Thursday's top performer, but he struggled to a 71 in his second trip around the course, and he is tied at eight under in a group that includes Justin Thomas.

Cameron Smith also shot 71 to drop a shot back to six under, where he is joined by Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama and Collin Morikawa.

Scottie Scheffler ended the first day of the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club with a five-stroke lead at 15 under thanks to the combination of a fine display and his FedEx Cup points advantage.

Scheffler, who enjoyed a meteoric rise this PGA Tour season to earn the ranking of world number one, began the tournament at 10 under par thanks to his position atop the FedEx Cup standings coming into Thursday's first round.

And he bolstered his hopes of claiming FedEx Cup success with a five-under 65 that ensured he heads into Friday with gaping five-stroke lead.

In second is Xander Schauffele at 10 under after his four-under round, while Matt Fitzpatrick is third after being one of two players to shoot the round of the day (64).

The other 64 came from Chile's Joaquin Neimann, who has pulled himself into contention in a tie for fourth, where he is joined at eight under by Patrick Cantlay.

Cantlay started the day at eight under and needed an eagle on the last hole just to post an even-par round after winning last week's BMW Championship.

A further shot back at seven under is Im Sung-jae, Cameron Smith and Rory McIlroy, all of whom started at four under and shot 67s.

It was by no means a consistent round from McIlroy, however. He was four over par for the round after the fourth hole and he tallied only four pars in what was an erratic showing.

Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm, Sepp Straka, Sam Burns and Cameron Young are the last players to sneak into the top-10, tied for ninth at six under, while Collin Morikawa headlines the small group at five under.

Corey Conners was Thursday's worst performer, finishing his day at three over after shooting 74 to sit in 29th, with the 30th entrant, Will Zalatoris, having withdrawn earlier in the week after suffering a back injury at the BMW Championship.

Patrick Cantlay entered Sunday's final round of the BMW Championship with the outright lead, and he ended it with his second consecutive win at the event after birdieing his 17th hole to pull ahead by one stroke, finishing at 14 under.

He is the first player in the 16-year history of the FedEx Cup playoffs to successfully defend one of the playoff events.

On a tough scoring day where only three players shot better than 68, Cantlay kept his cool, taking advantage of Scott Stallings' missed birdie putt on 18 that would have also moved him to 14 under, draining his own final birdie moments later to head onto the 72nd hole with the lead.

Things threatened to heat up after Cantlay's last tee shot veered right into the bunker, but with a few branches hanging over his direct line to the flag, he played it safe and landed his approach on the open left-side of the green, leaving a 15-yard two-putt to win the tournament.

In his typical stoic fashion, he stepped up and nearly birdied it, lipping out for a tap-in par to secure back-to-back victories at the BMW Championship. 

It is Cantlay's 11th top-10 finish of the season, giving him the most for this PGA Tour season, leading Matt Fitzpatrick and Scottie Scheffler with 10.

Speaking to The Golf Channel after stepping off the 18th green, Cantlay said it takes a little bit of luck to win events like these, highlighting his tee shot on the 17th hole which looked destined for the bunker, only to bounce over and land in the middle of the fairway to set up his winning birdie.

"I hit a lot of solid shots, and then I got a couple of good breaks," he said. "Obviously on 17, that isn't a break I'm expecting, and it was really big for me to take advantage of it. 

"I've played a lot of great golf this week, and I'm happy to come away with the win.

"I made a lot of clutch five and four-footers today, the putter felt really good today, really solid, and I'll hopefully carry that into next week."

Stallings finished in outright second at 13 under, jumping up from 46th in the FedEx Cup standings to 12th, comfortably landing inside the top-30 to book his spot in the coming week's Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Course.

In the two-way tie for third at 11 under was world number one Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele, and in a tie for fifth at 10 under was Canada's Corey Conners, South Korea's Lee Kyoung-hoon, and Australia's Adam Scott.

Lee and Scott had plenty to play for on Sunday, as Lee shot the round of the day with a 65 to leapfrog into the top-30, while Scott needed a bunker save on the 18th hole to book his spot in the Tour Championship, and he did so, finishing 29th in the FedEx Cup standings.

Rounding out the top-10 at nine under was a group that included Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy, while Shane Lowry was one of three players to finish at eight under, and he was the unlucky player to fall out of the top-30 as Scott jumped in.

Sahith Theegala's tie for 15th at seven under was good enough to finish 28th in the FedEx Cup standings, Jordan Spieth was at six under, and Cameron Young, who looked like a potential winner heading into the weekend, ended up at five under after back-to-back 72s on Saturday and Sunday.

Defending champion and world number four Patrick Cantlay stormed into a one-shot lead at the final turn at the BMW Championship at Wilmington Country Club after a six-under-round of 65 on Saturday.

Cantlay had three birdies on a bogey-free front nine, but catapulted himself up the leaderboard down the back nine with birdies on the 12th and 13th holes, followed by a 104-yard eagle hole-out on the 14th.

The American had bogeyed on the penultimate hole after missing a routine putt but made birdie on the 18th after an excellent approach to re-claim his outright lead by one stroke ahead of Xander Schauffele and Scott Stallings.

Last year's FedEx Cup champion Cantlay is 12 under at the top, with Schauffele and Stallings both carding five-under rounds of 66 on Saturday to move up to 11-under overall.

Adam Scott, who led by one stroke at the halfway mark, is third on 10 under alongside world number one Scottie Scheffler.

Scheffler was on track for a share of the lead, at the very least, but back-to-back bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes stalled his progress before a birdie on the last after a fine 136-yard approach kept him in touch.

Two-time major winner Collin Morikawa and Aaron Wise are within range at nine under, while Rory McIlroy is back at seven under after four bogeys on Saturday including one on the 18th.

Cameron Young shot a one-over-round of 72 to slip to six-under overall, with Jon Rahm finding his form with a six-under-round of 65 but he remains back at five-under overall after his slow start.

Jordan Spieth slipped way out of contention to be four-under overall after a disastrous third round, carding a three-over 74 with a double bogey in the fifth hole, along with five bogeys and four birdies.

Last week's FedEx St. Jude Championship winner Will Zalatoris retired mid-round after succumbing to a lower back injury.

After two rounds of the BMW Championship at Wilmington Country Club it is Adam Scott alone atop the leaderboard at eight under, but some of the sport's biggest stars are breathing down his neck.

Scott shot the second-best score of the opening round with a six-under 65, and he was in position to put a gap on the field as he was sitting at 10 under with two holes to play before a costly double bogey on the 17th saw him post a 69 on his second trip around the course.

An incredibly strong four-man group is one stroke back at seven under, consisting of American trio Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler and Cameron Young along with Canada's Corey Conners.

Only two players – Kurt Kitayama and Keith Mitchell (both 66s) – shot better than Scheffler, Conners and Spieth's 67 on Friday as they marched up the leaderboard.

Also shooting a 67 was Australia's Cam Davis, helping him to six under in a tie for sixth, where is joined by Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay and Scott Stallings in a loaded top-10.

More serious contenders are at five under, including major champions Shane Lowry and Hideki Matsuyama, with Lowry projected to sneak into the top-30 of the FedEx Cup rankings and earn a berth into the Tour Championship if he can hold on.

Also at five under is Kitayama, who was Friday's best putter according to Data Golf's strokes gained stats, with his 3.75 strokes gained leading second-placed Matsuyama (3.31 strokes gained).

First-round leader Keegan Bradley shot a 74 to fall down to four under, where he is joined by Tyrrell Hatton and Lee Kyoung-hoon, while Will Zalatoris, Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas are a further stroke back in the logjam at three under. 

Rising talent Sahith Theegala is at two under, Max Homa is at one under and the pairing of Matt Fitzpatrick and Viktor Hovland are the top names at even par.

Jon Rahm enters the weekend at one over, given there is no cut for this tournament, and despite being Friday's best driver (1.84 strokes gained, McIlroy second at 1.49), he was the third-worst in approach shots (2.45 strokes lost) and second-worst in the around-the-green category (1.96 strokes lost).

Keegan Bradley rode a hot putter to the outright lead after 18 holes of the BMW Championship, finishing Thursday's play with a seven-under 64.

Bradley entered the week ranked 44th in the FedEx Cup standings, outside the top-30 who will qualify for next week's Tour Championship, but put himself in a great position thanks in large part to his work on the greens.

He collected six birdies on the front nine, and according to Data Golf's strokes gained stats, Bradley was the top overall putter in the opening round, picking up 4.00 strokes with the flat stick, while also coming in seventh in the approach category (2.02 strokes gained).

It was a similar story for Adam Scott in outright second at six under, finishing third in putting (3.30 strokes gained) and 11th in approach shots (1.82 strokes gained).

In a tie for third at five under is the trio of Harold Varner III, Shane Lowry and Justin Thomas – but they all made it there in different ways.

Varner excelled in the tee-to-green category, putting a gap on the field as he gained 5.28 strokes, with Lowry in second-place at 3.32. While Varner was the third-best driver on the day, Lowry was actually a negative off the tee, but led the field in the approach category.

Meanwhile, Thomas was solid just about everywhere, finishing on the fringe of the top-10 in tee-to-green, around the green and putting categories – despite lipping out a four-footer for his only bogey on the 15th hole.

The logjam at four under includes Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele and Cameron Young, and there is a star-studded group one further back at three under featuring Patrick Cantlay, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth. McIlroy will be left ruing a calamitous showing at the par-three 15th hole, where he found the water to triple-bogey when he was one stroke off the lead.

U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick headlines the group at two under, Hideki Matsuyama and Will Zalatoris are at one under, and recent 20-year-old winner Joo-hyung 'Tom' Kim is at even par.

Viktor Hovland and Jon Rahm will be disappointed with their rounds at two over, and the previously red-hot Tony Finau is likely out of the hunt as only two players shot worse than his six-over 77.

Tony Finau became the first player since Brendon Todd in 2019 to win back-to-back PGA Tour events, taking advantage of the friendly conditions to win the Rocket Mortgage Classic by five shots.

Finau – who entered the final round with a four-stroke lead along with Taylor Pendrith – made six birdies and one bogey in a closing five-under 67 at Detroit Golf Club. It was his only dropped shot of the tournament, after just three bogeys last weekend in his 3M Open triumph.

The 32-year-old finished on an incredible 26 under, with Patrick Cantlay, Pendrith and Cameron Young tied for second place.

Prior to that 3M Open success, Finau had only two wins for his career, and one since the 2015-16 season, with the notoriously mediocre putter figuring things out on the greens. 

He entered the week as the 142nd best putter on the tour this season, but was the 13th best in that discipline for the tournament among players to make the cut, according to Data Golf's strokes gained stat. 

It made a devastating combination when combined with his strong tee-to-green stats – clearly the best of the week, gaining 3.44 strokes on the field in that area, 0.73 more than any other player.

Speaking to the CBS after stepping off the 18th green, Finau said it feels extremely rewarding to have his hard work culminate in such an incredible fortnight.

"It feels amazing, last week was amazing," he said. 

"I was actually quite disappointed in my finish last week, and all I wanted to do this week was show that I am a winner and a champion. I think I did that today.

"The work has been relentless, and to be able to just get rewarded for it… you never know in this game, but you keep your head up, put one foot after the other and good things can happen. That's what's happened the last couple weeks for me."

Pendrith started the day as co-leader, before finishing as one of 16 players to shoot 72 or worse.

A 72 saw Pendrith's challenge fade, while Cantlay signed for a 66 and Young carded a 68.

Germany's Stephan Jaeger finished alone in fifth at 20 under, America's Taylor Moore was sixth as the only player at 19 under, and South Korea's Kim Jooh-yung tied the tournament record with a nine-under 63 to shoot up the leaderboard into outright seventh at 18 under.

Wyndham Clark and J.J. Spaun both shot 65s to finish tied for eighth at 17 under.

Tony Finau posted the equal-best score from the third round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic on Saturday, with his seven-under 65 pulling him even with Taylor Pendrith after entering the day one stroke off the pace.

Finau and Pendrith were co-leaders after the first round, and after building a multi-stroke buffer from the rest of the field after 36 holes, they added to it again to finish at 21 under – four strokes clear of Cameron Young in third-place.

Each player showed a different skill set, with Pendrith displaying a strong feel in his ability to finish holes – posting the seventh-best strokes gained figure from Data Golf on approach shots (2,07 strokes gained) and the 11th-best with the putter (1.98).

Finau, on the other hand, shined with his driver, finishing second in strokes gained off the tee (1.98) and third in tee-to-green (3.97) while being just average around the greens.

After winning this past weekend's 3M Championship, Finau now has a chance to win back-to-back PGA Tour events for the first time in his career, while Pendrith is hunting his first PGA Tour victory.

Young was one of five players to match Finau's 65, and he sits alone in third at 17 under, with Germany's Stephan Jaeger in fourth at 16 under, and Patrick Cantlay rounds out the top-five as the only player at 15 under.

Scott Stallings is alone at 14 under, with South Korea's Kim Si-woo and Canada's Adam Svensson in the groups at 13 under and 12 under respectively to complete the top-10.

Reigning champion of this event Cam Davis also shot 65 to fly up the leaderboard, tied for 16th at 10 under after finishing his second round right on the cut-line of three under.

It was the opposite story for compatriot Adam Scott, who entered the day in a strong position at nine under and proceeded to shoot a 78, finishing as by far the worst putter on Saturday, losing 5.62 strokes on the greens.

All eyes in the golfing world will be trained on St Andrews this week as The Open returns for its 150th championship.

The final major of a year of fracture for the sport will bring the biggest names together once more, but who is best placed to take home the Claret Jug?

Five Stats Perform writers have their say ahead of the tournament...

LIV AND LET LIVE? OOSTHUIZEN IS A ST ANDREWS MASTER – Pete Hanson

Is it time to live and let live (or rather LIV and let live)? The proverb is defined as being able to "tolerate the opinions and behaviour of others so that they will similarly tolerate your own", but in the instance of the LIV defectors it is increasingly difficult to accept the decision for jumping ship as anything other than a nauseating money grab. That being said, looking at this through a purely sporting lens, LIV players who have qualified for The Open are allowed to play this weekend and Louis Oosthuizen knows a thing or two about St Andrews. The South African romped to a seven-shot win at the home of golf in 2010 and only lost in a three-man play-off to Zach Johnson at the same venue five years later. He was also leading through three rounds at Royal St George's a year ago before a final round one over coupled with a Collin Morikawa masterclass saw him end up tied for third.

RORY WINNING POPULARITY CONTESTS AND NOW SEEKS ST ANDREWS SUCCESS – Ben Spratt

If the LIV breakaway has made villains of a number of star names, Rory McIlroy is the PGA Tour's hero. With news of each defector, McIlroy has stood firm in his opposition to the Saudi-backed series – all the while stringing together a superb run of form, finishing in the top 20 in each of his past seven entries and the top 10 in each of the first three majors of the year. Rory is a very real contender this week, and there could hardly be a more popular winner. He has unfinished business at St Andrews, too, having tied for third in 2010 and then missed the 2015 event – where he would have been the defending champion – through injury.

RED-HOT SCHAUFFELE IS THE MAN TO BEAT – Russell Greaves

Fresh from his victory at the Scottish Open – where other putative Open contenders floundered – Xander Schauffele is certainly one to watch. Last week's victory at the Renaissance Club, which came despite a two-over-par opening round, came hot on the heels of his triumph at the Travelers Championship, sending the Tokyo 2020 gold medallist to St Andrews as a man in form. The American has also been in the mix at golf's oldest major before, finishing tied second at Carnoustie in 2018, where a final-round 74 ended his hopes of a maiden major. That search will continue this week for the 28-year-old, with the Claret Jug firmly in his sights. 

MORE MORIKAWA MAGIC INCOMING? – Patric Ridge

Morikawa enjoyed a sensational 2021, triumphing at Royal St George's to claim his second major title aged just 24 and becoming the first player to win on his Open debut since 2003. Yet 2022 has so far failed to yield the same success for the defending champion. He went into the weekend with the lead at last month's U.S. Open, only for a wobble on the Saturday to prove costly. After recovering with a fourth-round 65 to finish tied for fifth, Morikawa said he had learned to "just go play golf", although that approach did not serve him particularly well at the Scottish Open, where he failed to make the cut. If he manages to find the composure that deserted him during that dismal third round in Boston, however, then the world number eight cannot be overlooked as a serious contender once again.

CANTLAY CAN COME GOOD ON THE MAJOR STAGE – John Skilbeck

As the rumour mill links him with an LIV Golf switch, Patrick Cantlay is keeping his focus on the course. The American had a win alongside Schauffele in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in April and has achieved four top-fives and two top-15 finishes in his past seven events, including a tie for fourth at the Scottish Open. The elephant in the room is that Cantlay has mostly flunked the majors this year, tying for 39th at The Masters, missing the cut at the US PGA Championship and trailing home in a share of 14th at the U.S. Open. However, the 30-year-old is not fourth in the world rankings for nothing; his time is surely coming. Florida-based Cantlay ranks in the top five for birdie (or better) percentage on the PGA Tour when finding the fairway off the tee this year but is outside the top 70 when driving into the rough, so accuracy from the tee will likely determine his fate.

Xander Schauffele was the beneficiary of an 18th-hole double-bogey from leader Sahith Theegala, going on to win the Travelers Championship by two strokes with a birdie at the last.

Schauffele finished the tournament at 19 under with rounds of 63, 63, 67 and finally a 68 on Sunday as wind picked up and the scoring conditions worsened.

The win is the sixth of his PGA Tour career and his first singles win since January 2019, also collecting the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in a team format with Patrick Cantlay in April of this season.

It was Theegala controlling the final stages after he moved to 19 under and the outright lead with birdies at 13, 15 and 17 down the stretch, but after finding the fairway bunker on 18, he muffed his first attempt to get out, requiring another two shots to get to the green, before his bogey putt lipped out.

It meant Schauffele only needed par to claim the championship, and he went one better, finishing in style with a perfect drive, approach and putt for birdie.

Speaking on the 18th green after his winning putt, he said it felt incredible to convert a 54-hole lead for the first time in his career.

"It's incredible," Schauffele said. "I was looking at birdie just to get into a play-off and saw there was a bit of a hiccup with Sahith when I was standing on the tee.

"I knew I had to hit that fairway and hit it anywhere on the green to make par."

Theegala finished tied for second at 17 under along with J.T. Poston, who was one of three players to shoot 64 or better on Sunday (also Chesson Hadley and Scott Stallings).

In outright fourth was Michael Thorbjornsen following a week he will never forget, finishing at 15 under after being the only amateur to make the cut, closing his week with rounds of 65, 66 and 66 to make a statement about his future on the PGA Tour.

Hadley held outright fifth place at 14 under, going bogey-free with four birdies and an eagle for his 64, while Keith Mitchell and Kevin Kisner shared sixth place at 12 under, with Kisner carding a disappointing 71 on Sunday to take himself out of contention.

The round of the day came from Stallings, who went bogey-free with seven birdies for his 63, rounding out the top 10 in a tie for eighth along with Brian Harman, Chez Reavie, William McGirt and Nick Hardy.

A star-studded group finished tied for 13th at 10 under, featuring world number one Scottie Scheffler, number six Cantlay and fellow top-20 American Tony Finau. It was tough work for the stars, with an even par 70 for Scheffler on Sunday, while Cantlay entered the day one stroke off the lead and carded a 76.

Rory McIlroy and recent winner Lee Kyoung-hoon were in the group that completed out the top 20.

Xander Schauffele shot a three-under 67 on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead over Patrick Cantlay, coming into the final round of the Travelers Championship.

Looking for his sixth individual title on the PGA Tour, the reigning Olympic champion began the day with a five-stroke lead and went two-under over the front nine to help set up a career-best run of 48 holes without a bogey.

Schauffele hit trouble and a briefly fell into a tie for the lead on the par-five 13th, though, finding the water with his tee shot to eventually finish with a bogey.

He recovered to retake the solo lead however, claiming birdies on the 16th and 17th hole, hitting the pin on his approach and one-putting on the latter.

Schauffele leads by a solitary shot on 17-under from close friend Patrick Cantlay, who charged up the leaderboard on Saturday with a bogey-free, seven-under 63.

The two formed a close bond after being paired at the 2019 Presidents Cup and along with pairing up again at the Ryder Cup, took out this year's Zurich Classic together.

The reigning FedEx Cup champion will be looking to claim his first individual title of 2022, though, after losing in playoffs this year to Scottie Scheffler and Jordan Spieth at the Phoenix Open and the Heritage respectively.

Sahith Theegala is three strokes back from Schauffele on 14-under after posting a six-under 64 on Saturday, even after a bogey on the par-four 18th.

The 24-year-old was otherwise in fine touch over the back nine in Cromwell, with an eagle on the 13th in contrast to the leader accompanied by three birdies.

Yet to win a tournament on the PGA Tour, Theegala is followed by Kevin Kisner on 13-under, then a tie for fifth between Martin Laird and KH Lee on 12-under.

Xander Schauffele shot his second consecutive 63 to head into the weekend at the Travelers Championship at 14 under – five strokes clear of the chasing pack.

Remarkably, Schauffele is yet to post a bogey in the tournament, with 14 birdies and 22 pars through his 36 holes.

He started beautifully in his second trip around TPC River Highlands, birdieing three of his first five holes, and capped off his round by birdieing the picturesque 17th hole for the second day in a row.

Schauffele was one stroke behind J.T. Poston and Rory McIlroy after Thursday's action, and tied for the round of the day on Friday along with Harold Varner III.

At 14 under, Schauffele has tied the TPC River Highlands 36-hole record, and it ties him with Justin Rose back in 2010 for the lowest 36-hole score at the Travelers Championship since 1984.

The five-man group tied for second place at nine under is made up of Americans Patrick Cantlay, Harris English, Nick Hardy and Kevin Kisner, as well as Australia's Cam Davis. Hardy and Kisner were the pick of that group on Friday, shooting 64s.

McIlroy and Poston sit one shot further back at eight under after the first-round leaders both shot even-par 70s, and are joined at eight under by a group including Lee Kyoung-hoon and Matthew NeSmith.

Webb Simpson is at seven under, rounding out the top-20, along with Michael Thorbjornsen, who is the only amateur to make the cut after rounds of 68 and 65.

World number one Scottie Scheffler is at five under, along with Varner, with the pair taking very different routes to that number. Scheffler has been consistent, with a 68 and a 67, while Varner has been the opposite, following his opening 72 with a 63.

With the cut-line at two under, Danny Willett and Mito Pereira were two of the players to miss out on the weekend despite being under par, while Sam Burns finished his week even, Jordan Spieth was one over, and the talented duo of Rickie Fowler and Joaquinn Neimann were at three over.

Rory McIlroy continued to lead the way both on and off the course, shooting a bogey-free eight-under 62 at the Travelers Championship on Thursday.

After defending his title at the Canadian Open for a 21st PGA Tour win a fortnight ago, following up with a top-five finish at the U.S. Open, McIlroy opened with five birdies over the front nine on the TPC at River Highlands course.

The most vocal of critics against the LIV Golf Invitational Series, the in-form Northern Irishman then closed with two birdies over the final four holes, including a birdie on the par-four 18th to punctuate a blistering opening round.

The birdies were flying at the opening day in Cromwell however, with JT Poston taking a share of the opening-round lead with an eight-under of his own.

They hold a one-stroke lead over Xander Schauffele, who closed with four birdies over the final six holes on Thursday to finish on a seven-under 63, tied for second with Scotsman Martin Laird.

Schauffele was in fine touch with his approach game, hitting the ball particularly cleanly and could have finished with an even lower score had he capitalised with his putter.

They were followed by a three-way tie for third, with Patrick Cantlay, Webb Simpson and Charles Howell III all posting scores of six-under in the opening round.

Meanwhile, Cam Davis and Matthew NeSmith share fourth place after the opening 18 holes, finishing on five-under for the round.

While others shone in Cromwell, Jordan Spieth had a tough day out for his opening round despite three birdies over the last five holes, finishing with a five-over 75 for the day.

He will have plenty of work to do on Friday just to make the cut, while world number one Scottie Scheffler posted a two-under 68.

Billy Horschel shot a blistering seven-under 65 on Saturday to secure a five-stroke lead heading into the final round of the Memorial Tournament.

Horschel shot another bogey-free round on Saturday to extend his streak to 44 consecutive holes, with his last coming on the 10th hole in the first round.

One year after Jon Rahm built a six-stroke lead coming into the Sunday at the Memorial, before having to withdraw due to a positive Covid-19 test, Horschel will have a chance to see off the field with a healthy buffer.

After chipping in for birdie on the opening hole, Horschel played incisively from there as the course firmed, zeroing in on the pin and not leaving himself with much work on the greens at Muirfield Village.

The 35-year-old will be going for his seventh tournament win on the PGA Tour, with his last victory coming at the 2021 WGC Match Play, defeating Scottie Scheffler in the final.

World number three Cameron Smith commenced with a one-stroke lead on Saturday but started slowly with bogeys from the bunker on the opening two holes.

He recovered from another bogey to open the back nine to finish on even par for the round, remaining on eight-under for the tournament.

The Australian is tied for second with Aaron Wise, who steadied after a fast start on the front nine to score a three-under 68 on Saturday.

A three-way tie for third between Daniel Berger, Francesco Molinari and Jhonattan Vegas sits a further stroke back.

Meanwhile, defending champion Patrick Cantlay sits on six-under along with another four players.

World number three Cameron Smith headlines a six-way tie atop the Memorial Tournament leaderboard after Thursday's first round at Muirfield Village.

Smith is joined by American trio Luke List, Cameron Young and Davis Riley, as well as Canada's Mackenzie Hughes and South Korea's Lee Kyoung-hoon.

It is the largest leading group after the first round in tournament history, but they all got to their five-under 67 in different ways. 

Young finished the day second in average driving distance (316.8 yards), behind only Jon Rahm, while Lee, Hughes and Smith finished top-six in putts-per-green-in-regulation.

List was the only member of the leading group to finish with less than two bogeys, and Riley played an all-round game; top-15 in driving distance while being dialled in with his putter down the back-nine, going five-under from the 11th hole to the 17th.

US PGA Championship runner-up Will Zalatoris is part of the three-man group one stroke off the lead, while Max Homa and Canada's Corey Conners are in the logjam at three under.

A star-studded group finished with a two-under 70, including Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Xander Schauffele and Im Sung-jae, while Chile's Joaquin Neimann is with Collin Morikawa and Jason Day at one under.

Patrick Cantlay and Rahm were even-par, Mito Pereira will need a solid second round to make the cut after a one-over finish, and Hideki Matsuyama was handed his first career disqualification for using a wood with paint on its face – deemed illegal. He was three over at the time of the incident.