Rory McIlroy’s third-round charge at The Open Championship was derailed in bizarre fashion on Saturday when he unwittingly performed a trick shot at the 11th hole.
With one swish of his club, McIlroy not only hit his designated ball out of the rough to the right of the fairway but also dug out another ball that had been buried underneath the turf.
The second ball popped out of the ground, much to McIlroy’s surprise. He picked it up and held it out in front of him, looking confused.
“I have another golf ball,” he said with a smile to those around him.
His shot wound up being a poor one, coming up short of the green, and he couldn’t get up and down for par. The bogey — the first of his round — dropped him to 2 under for the day and 5 under for the tournament at Royal Portrush, and he was seven shots behind leader Scottie Scheffler.
McIlroy birdied three of his first four holes. He rebounded from the bizarre moment with an eagle at No. 12.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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