Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson lose Match Play openers

Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson suffered surprise defeats in their opening matches at the World Golf Championships Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin on Wednesday.
The 28-year-old Northern Irishman, who claimed his first title in 18 months at the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week, went down 2&1 to America’s Peter Uihlein in his opening Group 6 game.
💪 @PeterUihlein fends off @APInv winner Rory McIlroy @DellMatchPlay. pic.twitter.com/B2nHTkd32w
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 21, 2018
Defending champion Johnson, meanwhile, went down 3&1 to Austria’s Bernd Weisberger.
The defeats mean the two face a struggle to qualify for the last 16.
Rory Golf 🚀 pic.twitter.com/bQduSUNiKe
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) March 22, 2018
McIlroy will need to beat both Jhonattan Vegas on Thursday and Brian Harman on Friday while hoping other scores go his way, while Johnson will also need two wins from his remaining matches.
Following his defeat, McIlroy said: “I didn’t really necessarily play badly,” McIlroy said. “He played pretty well. He was a few under through nine and he didn’t make a bogey all day. So it was hard to claw my way back.
“It was gusty out there; the conditions were a little tricky. I made a run at him at the end but it was a little too late.”
Weisberger, a European Ryder Cup hopeful, was obviously happy with his win over the world number one.
💪 @BWiesberger takes down defending champion @DJohnsonPGA. pic.twitter.com/t8Zxxjm7V7
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 21, 2018
“I still didn’t play great but somehow managed to get it done and I’m just happy with that,” said Wiesberger. “I thought it was the easiest game I could have; I’m the underdog playing with the defending champion.”
In other action, world number two Justin Thomas avoided an embarrassing loss to Luke List, who was forced to putt with a wedge after bending his putter in frustration early on.
Thomas eventually took the match 2 up.
“I was walking off the sixth green and I was a little unhappy about the way I was feeling, a little under the weather,” List said.
“I thought it was a brush area and I just kind of swiped my putter and it turned out to be a wall. Stupid on my part.”
Jordan Spieth beat South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel 2&1, Jason Day triumphed against James Hahn 4&2, while Masters champion Sergio Garcia edged rising Indian star Shubhankar Sharma 1 up.
Latest
-
News
Sponsor Ralph Lauren drops Justin Thomas following homophobic slur in Hawaii
The world number three uttered the derogatory word towards himself after missing a putt at Kapalua last weekend.
-
News
Bryson DeChambeau keeping brain relaxed to avoid repeat of Masters misery
DeChambeau said his brain went into overdrive at Augusta National.
-
News
European Tour preparing for business as planned in the Middle East
Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship is due to start next week.
-
News
Two-time major champion Angel Cabrera arrested in Brazil
The former US Open and Masters winner was on the run from the law.
-
News
On this Day in 2013: Paul McGinley given Ryder Cup captaincy
McGinley would go on to be involved in a sixth Ryder Cup victory.
-
News
Collin Morikawa keen to draw inspiration from family ties to Hawaii at Sony Open
Venezuela’s Jhonattan Vegas has withdrawn from the event after testing positive for coronavirus.
-
News
R&A: ‘No plans’ for Open to head to Donald Trump-owned Turnberry in near future
Trump National in Bedminster was on Sunday stripped of next year’s US PGA Championship.
-
News
US PGA Championship moved from Donald Trump-owned course in New Jersey
Trump National in Bedminster had been set to host the event.
-
News
Justin Thomas : ‘I made a terrible, terrible judgement call’
Thomas admitted he was distracted by what happened on Saturday during his final round.
-
News
PGA Championship to be moved away from Donald Trump-owned course
It is the second time in six years the PGA has moved an event away from a course owned by Donald Trump.