That meant the defending champions, Rory McIlroy, who won the 2025 Masters less than two weeks ago to complete the career Grand Slam, and his partner, Shane Lowry, could be aggressive from the start.

AVONDALE, La. (AP) — Rory McIlroy, playing for the first time since winning the Masters, teamed with Shane Lowry to shoot an 8-under 64 in better-play Thursday in the Zurich Classic, leaving the Irish defending champions six shots behind leaders Isaiah Salinda and Kevin Vetlo.

It's never a good thing to have too many swing thoughts in your head over the ball. It's even worse when they're of the negative variety. This is true even among the best players in the world, something we saw play out on Wednesday at the Zurich Classic.