Xander Schauffele plays a nice recovery after taking a drop for hitting the water, but he doesn't give his par putt enough juice down the hill as it just runs out of steam.

So it's a bogey for the defending champion.

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How about that from Luke Donald?

A tremendous birdie putt tucked away at the 10th and he joins Ryan Fox and Tommy Fleetwood at three under par and in a share of the early lead.

Team Europe on the march.

Oliver Wilson
Former Ryder Cup player on BBC Radio 5 live

Obviously Shane Lowry is playing great golf and experienced enough to keep riding it out. It does eat at you after a while. He can't allow that to happen but has to just step up and keep plugging away.

It's still the beginning of the tour, not an easy golf course. While he's not off to a great start, he's still playing good golf and hopefully can turn it around.

It would be nice to see him win. He's crept into the top 10 in the world - you don't get there by luck.

He's going to keep knocking on the door and hopefully will get a win soon.

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Not everybody who has started on the back nine is enjoying such fun though.

Ireland's Shane Lowry has bogeyed three of four holes from the 13th and his hopes of following up last week's good showing in Philly are quickly disappearing.

Work to do for the 2019 Open champion

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It's a hat-trick of birdies for Englishman Tommy Fleetwood, who rolls in a short one on the par-five 15th to join Ryan Fox at the top of the leaderboard.

A solid start by the man from Southport is turning into an excellent one. Cracking.

Our early leader is through his opening nine holes.

Three birdies in his opening five holes shot Ryan Fox to the top of the leaderboard and nobody has been able to catch him yet.

A straightforward two-putt par on the 18th sees the New Zealander turn at three under par.

But is about to be joined at the top...

Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy both smack their tee shots up to around the 14th green, which is a driveable par-four measuring 311 yards today.

Xander Schauffele pulls his tee shot left though and he watches his ball splash down into the water.

Good par save from Scottie Scheffler after his chip from below the green just had a bit too much grab on it and pulled up eight feet short.

Rory McIlroy hits an educated long putt down the hill that leaves him with just a tap-in for his three.

Nial Foster
BBC Sport NI at Quail Hollow

Rory McIlroy faced a delay at the 13th tee box but the world number two thrives on quick play. After a sluggish practice round yesterday in sweltering heat, these hold-ups may test his patience.

A four-time winner here, McIlroy prefers a brisk pace to maintain rhythm.

With conditions drying out and the temperature already 25 degrees at 9.20am in Charlotte, he will be keen to refocus and finish before it gets even warmer later.

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A little bit necky from Scottie Scheffler with his tee shot on the par-three 13th - actually it's a lot necky, especially for one of the best iron players we've seen in the game.

He's short and right of the green, Rory McIlroy a touch long but centre of the putting surface and Xander Schauffele with the pick of the bunch.

Happens to us all!

Gavin Andrews
BBC Sport NI at Quail Hollow

Small margins at Quail Hollow.

The marquee group all playing into the 12th with wedges in hand can’t find the green.

Scottie and Xander go long. Rory spins it back and off the green. The slopes and changes in elevation are brutal.

No big deal… Scheffler chips in from the rough for birdie!!

Phil Mickelson was the oldest major champion when he won this title in 2021 at the age of 50. He's scrambling down the 14th after a wild drive finds water down the left.

He then dumps his third shot into a greenside bunker but shows magical skill to flop out to a couple of feet and he'll escape with a bogey.

But this is a hole where pars will lose you ground on the field today.

Phil is playing with Tommy Fleetwood and the Englishman keeps up his solid start with a curling birdie putt from a dozen feet.

Iain Carter
BBC golf correspondent on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

The number of times he chips in during majors is just incredible.

Golf eh! Scottie Scheffler in the worst spot of the three after their approaches, but he pulls a wonderful little chip out of the bag and holes it for a birdie!

Image source, Getty Images

Scottie Scheffler out of the first cut on the right of the 12th hole just flies it too far and the ball takes a rock hard bounce and tumbles off the back of the green.

Considering all the rain that's fallen the putting surfaces are incredibly dry and fast - even though Quail Hollow has a sub air system which can suck the moisture out it's still impressive.

Rory McIlroy takes dead aim and it looks a beauty as the ball hops up to inside 10 feet, but there's too much swazz on the ball and it spins back and off the top shelf of the green.

Luke Donald told BBC golf correspondent Iain Carter that just making the cut would be a success for him this week.

The Europe Ryder Cup captain says this beast of a course, coupled with all the rain that will make it play even longer, is just too long for him now.

But the 47-year-old is currently taming Quail Hollow. A birdie on the eighth is his second of the day and adding that to six pars leaves him one off the lead.

He's playing with Padraig Harrington, the 2008 US PGA champion, who also knocks in a birdie to get under par. The 53-year-old also rolling back the years.

It's been a haphazard start from the 2023 champion Brooks Koepka, who made bogey on his opening hole and has been fighting back since.

On the driveable par-four 14th, his fifth hole, Koepka smashes it over the putting surface but is relieved to find his ball holding up in the rough rather than in the water.

From there, a skilful up and down and he walks away with a three.

Back to level par.

Oliver Wilson
Former Ryder Cup player on BBC Radio 5 live

It was just a clumsy error putting straight up the hill.

Rory McIlroy just didn't have the pace of the green there and those are the kind of things that just annoy you.

He wanted to build his round from the birdie at the start but that definitely hampers things.

Rory McIlroy races his birdie putt a good seven feet past the hole after coming up 30 feet short from the fairway bunker.

His par putt then just cruls away to the right and that's a stinking three-putt for bogey that will really annoy McIlroy.

Scruffy hole for Scottie Scheffler who leaves his chip a good 12 feet short of the hole, and his putter can't get him out of trouble as he also makes a five.

Over on the par-three 13th, Tommy Fleetwood hits his tee shot under the hole to about 10 feet and he bends in the birdie putt to pick up his first shot of the day.

The driveable par-four 14th coming up...