McIlroy's reaction to his opening round

“The conditions were pretty tough early on and then the wind seemed to settle a little bit those last few holes and it was nice to take advantage of that and play them the way I did.

“Giving those shots away on 14 and 15, to get more than both of them back on the last three holes was a great way to finish and gives me plenty of momentum going into Friday morning.

“It’s nice to get off to a good start [in Northern Ireland] for a change. I enjoyed being out there, the crowds were great and it was great being out there with Tom [McKibbin] as well.

“Really pleased with how I started and hopefully I can continue into the next three days.”

What a golf shot, Rory #AmgenIrishOpen pic.twitter.com/qeGx4uiS10

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 12, 2024

Welcome

Good morning and welcome to our live blog for day two of the Irish Open from Royal County Down.

Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry both have early starts this morning, with their second rounds both commencing within the hour.

McIlroy finds himself in a great position after his late flourish on Thursday saw him birdie the last three holes after bogeys on both the 14th and 15th.

That means he is just two shots off the lead, which is held by England's Todd Clements, while Finland's Sami Välimäki and Alejandro del Rey of Spain are tied for second on four-under-par.

McIlroy is one of five players on three-under along with English pair Will Enefer and Marcus Armitage, South Africa's Thriston Lawrence and Italian Filippo Celli.

Lowry has some work to do after a one-over-par opening round 72.

We'll keep you up to date with how McIlroy and Lowry are getting one right here over the next few hours.