Perfect start for Rory McIlroy as he rolls in a birdie putt on the first following a superb approach shot. Who needs to find a fairway anyway!?

Tommy Fleetwood follows McIlroy in with a birdie of his own, which will be a welcome boost for the Englishman as he was a bit downtrodden yesterday as the links beat him up a bit.

Andrew Murray
Former European Tour winner on 5 Live

Spine-tingling noise here, I'm so excited for today.

I was nervous for Rory myself there off the first tee.

Two putts from 22 feet for Tyrrell Hatton and he can only walk off the second with a par five.

His playing partners Russell Henley and Min Woo Lee jot fours down on their scorecards.

A total of 17 groups have played the hole, so 51 players. There have been 20 birdies and one eagle so far, so I suspect Tyrrell might be giving himself a ticking off.

Peter Scrivener
BBC Sport senior journalist at Royal Portrush

For all you fans of grass length on putting surfaces, my colleague Amy Scarisbrick has sent me the following:

Greens double cut at 3.25mm. Average green speed 11 ft 0 in (the same speed as yesterday). Average green firmness 0.380 inches (0.016 inch less firm than yesterday following 3.4mm of rainfall).

You can't beat that kind of insight.

Rasmus Hojgaard was about a foot away from going out of bounds off the back of the fifth green, and a few more feet from ending up on the beach - but one hole later he finds himself in this growing group of leaders.

Hojgaard made par on five, then followed up with a birdie two at the sixth after knocking his tee shot to five feet.

That's now a magnificent seven now tied for the Open Championship lead!

Image source, Getty Images

Brian Harman almost goes three for three for birdies at the start of his second round, but a 30-footer for a two on the third doesn't drop.

Fellow American Maverick McNealy drops a shot to fall back to two under overall.

Matt Gault
BBC Sport NI senior journalist at Royal Portrush

Not nearly as much waiting around for this three-ball today.

Maybe not quite as emotionally charged as yesterday, but McIlroy's name is greeted with another hearty cheer.

Driving iron again. Left again. He needs to start finding the short stuff.

A similar opening tee shot to yesterday for Rory McIlroy, hitting a low squirty draw with a long iron, slightly overcooked as it trundles into the first cut of the rough.

Not a fairway, he only found two yesterday, but nothing disastrous off the first is always welcome here.

A few last putts then the short work over the bridge and down onto the first tee box, which again is packed out with home fans wanting to cheer on their hero.

Rory McIlroy shot 65 on Friday in 2019 in an emotional bid to try and make the cut after a shocking first round, but this time he's one under and just three off the lead instead of 13 last time here!

Tyrrell Hatton is wild and left with his tee shot on the long second. Right into the crowds and among the dunes.

It at least takes out any notion of attacking the green in two. Instead, it's a sensible option. A 250-yard biff to get the ball back in play and 60 yards short of the green.

From there, he knocks in to 22 feet. Birdie putt coming up.

A reminder that this first hole our competitors are facing is no joke.

It was the fifth hardest hole on the course yesterday with out of bounds both sides, with just 70 yards between the two sets of stakes - it's a fearsome prospect with those first tee nerves.

Faith Harper
BBC Sport NI at Royal Portrush

It's fair to say it was a pretty rough round for Bryson DeChambeau yesterday. His worst in a major to date!

He's spent the morning grafting on the range and now he's back out on the course, making a safe par at the first.

Surely it can't get worse than yesterday for the American?

Andy Gray
BBC Sport NI at Royal Portrush

Taps aff for Tyrrell Hatton.

He's taken his jumper off after getting frustrated after his second tee shot.

He said it was too restrictive after pinging his ball left, along with a word we can't publish.

The trio of Justin Rose, Bob MacIntyre and Bryson DeChambeau give themselves half-chances for birdie on the first hole.

Pars for all three.

Another of the morning marquee groups head out.

It was a tough Thursday for Ludvig Aberg, Viktor Hovland and Jordan Spieth - but all three did their best to limit the damage on day one.

Hovland eagled the second hole but fell away from there, while Spieth - who has never missed a cut at The Open - did well to recover after a slow start.

Solid tee shots from all three on the first.

Jonathan Bradley
BBC Sport NI senior journalist

Michael Kim ensured locals would be even more jealous of pro golfers than normal when revealing there was an ice cream cart from Northern Irish institution Morelli's available to the field this week.

Padraig Harrington then kept the theme going by saying Royal Portrush had the best 99s on the Open rota.

In the interest of serious journalism, felt we had to find out.

Can confirm - a great cone. Though, can it be a 99 at £4.50? Will let you decide.

Image source, BBC Sport

Brian Harman, the winner at Hoylake two years ago, has made a very hot start.

Starting at two under after a 69 yesterday, he sent his approach within three feet on the first for an easy opening birdie.

Then on the par-five second, he's left himself about 16 feet for eagle that would put him into the outright lead...

Not quite, but a birdie will take the American left-hander into a share of the lead.

Image source, Getty Images

A mixed bag from Rory McIlroy on Thursday - but after the nightmare of 2019 he will take being just three shots off the lead (he was 13 behind here last time!).

He made five birdies, the third most in the field, and his putter was working beautifully, but strangely it's the driver that's giving him problems.

I say strange because he's arguably the best driver of a golf ball in history, yet he hit just two fairways on Thursday - that's the worst return at the Open in his career and saw him rank 132nd in the field of 156.

Luckily, thanks to working with Brad Faxon, these days McIlroy's putting is vastly improved and that got him out of jail.

Fore left! Was a popular shout for McIlroy yesterday, if he can straighten his driver out he'll be back in business.

Marc Leishman picks up yet another birdie on the 12th to continue his fabulous round as he's now five under for the day and three under for the tournament.

He looks in bother on the 13th though...

Oh Min Woo... Lee is having the sort of start you or I might having just rocked up on the first tee two minutes before teeing off with zero warm-up.

He's followed his first with another low scudder straight into a fairway bunker. A hack out of there, a wedge on to the green and two putts all adds up to a scruffy six.

Tyrrell Hatton makes a regulation par, while Russell Henley goes backwards with a bogey after finding rough off the tee and being unable to reach the green in two.