The Open Day One: Live updates from Royal Portrush
Hello and welcome to live coverage of the
Open Championship
from
Royal Portrush
, only the third Major ever to be hosted on the island of Ireland. Last time out here,
Shane Lowry
created one of the greatest weeks in Irish sporting history by winning the Claret Jug in 2019. He would love to do it again and he tees off at 10.09am. Already on the course are
Pádraig Harrington
(who hit the opening tee shot), Tom McKibbin and Darren Clarke. Lowry tees off in the marquee group of the morning with world number one Scottie Scheffler and Collin Morikawa at 10.09am.
Later,
Rory McIlroy
continues the home charge when he tees off with Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Thomas at 3.10pm. The whole of Northern Ireland will be watching that one. By that stage, Mary Hannigan will be joining the blog to give you updates, but for now, it's myself to bring you through the morning action, as soon as I get set up.
If you'd like to know all the tee times and more information about the event, check my guide here:
[
The Open 2025: Tee times, TV details, weather forecast, players to watch
Opens in new window
]
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Calls for GAA to review All-Ireland final ticket system as Cork and Tipp fans scramble for seats
The GAA has been urged to review its All-Ireland final tickets system to give the competing counties a bigger slice of the allocation. The call comes amid unprecedented demand from Cork and Tipperary for what's been dubbed the hottest ticket of the summer — a ticket to Sunday's hugely anticipated All-Ireland final, the first between the two great Munster rivals. As Pat Ryan's team sets out to end a 20-year drought and make up for the heartbreak of last year's agonising one point defeat to Clare, fans are travelling in huge numbers to support their beloved Rebel County, but thousands more have been left scrambling for tickets. The Irish Examiner understands Cork County Board received a direct ticket allocation of 17,000 tickets, with a further 3,000 season-ticket holders dealing directly with Croke Park. Clubs have reported phenomenal demand for tickets, far outstripping their allocation, and they have been struggling to cope with the volume of requests. All the additional train services laid on by Irish Rail from the city's Kent Station to Dublin's Heuston are sold out. Cork superfan Cyril 'The Bird' Kavanagh has not yet secured a ticket to Sunday's final. Picture: Chani Anderson. There are reports some fans planning to drive will leave at 4am on Sunday in a bid to avoid queues at the motorway toll booths that caused 80-minute tailbacks near Fermoy ahead of the semi-final against Dublin two weeks ago. Such is the demand, that 20,000 free tickets to Sunday's Rebels Fanzone event in SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, where the match will be broadcast live on big screens, were snapped up just three hours after their release on Thursday morning. Croke Park has a capacity of just over 82,000, but unlike other games, All-Ireland final tickets do not go on general sale — the GAA distributes them instead. Last year, just over 10,500 were given to premium and corporates, 12,000 were distributed to smaller groups like the Croke Park residents, referees, and press, with the largest chunk allocated to supporters through the county boards, down to the clubs, and eventually into the hands of club members through draws or raffles. Just over 59,200 were allocated to counties, with the finalists getting the largest allocation, and season-ticket holders who attend at least five championship games and club members getting priority. Tipperary superfan James 'Sid' Ryan, front, with his nephew, Jason Murphy, and neighbours Daragh and Connor O'Donnell, in the garden of his blue and gold house on the Cashel Road. Picture: Stevie O'Donnell, Tipperary Mid West Radio The GAA has insisted it's the fairest way of allocating tickets for what is a national event, with stand tickets costing €100, and terrace tickets costing €55. But Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central Thomas Gould said it should be reviewed, and more should be done to ensure fans who attend the challenge matches, the league games, and others, like underage coaches and club activists who have devoted their lives to the game, have a better chance of getting their hands on an All-Ireland final tickets. 'Cork is the best supported GAA team in the country, and their fans travel in huge numbers,' Mr Gould said. 'The scenes in Croke Park for the semi-final prove that. But there will be thousands of disappointed fans out there because of the way the final tickets are distributed. 'There has to be a better way. There should also be a greater allocation of tickets to the counties that are competing in the final, especially when it comes to the large GAA counties like Cork and Tipperary.' His comments came as it emerged some of the GAA's most recognisable fans, the sombrero-wearing Cork superfan Cyril 'The Bird' Kavanagh and Pa 'the Piper' Hurley, have not secured tickets yet. Cyril, who finally managed to source a ticket for last year's All-Ireland final just days before the game, said he had not given up hope yet of bagging a ticket for Sunday's final. Across both counties, homes and businesses have been decked out in county colours as anticipation builds. Oak Fired Pizza's Sarah Loane said fans heading to the Rebel Fanzone event on Sunday would be able to get their hands on a Hoggie from the company's Marina Market outlet. Picture: Chani Anderson In Cork, award-winning pizza company Oak Fired Pizza has created a new pizza inspired by Cork talisman, Patrick Horgan. The Hoggie, the brainchild of hurling mad Chris Wholley, who works in the company's headquarters in Clonakilty, is a homage to the ace forward, and comes fully loaded with fior di lette cheese, topped with pulled ham hock, thinly sliced pancetta, and chorizo, and drizzled with sweet honey. Oak Fired Pizza's Sarah Loane said fans heading to the Rebel Fanzone event on Sunday would be able to get their hands on a Hoggie from the company's Marina Market outlet. Meanwhile, well-known Tipp supporter James 'Sid' Ryan has gone all out for his county team by painting his house on the Cashel Road outside Tipperary town blue and gold, by painting the path leading to the front door all blue, and stencilling it with giant gold letters spelling out "the home of hurling". And if that wasn't enough, he's also laid out a giant 40ftx30ft Tipp flag on the front garden. 'Tipp will have to stop Cork scoring early goals. We're in with a right shout, so we are. I think we're good enough to win after that,' he told Tipp Mid-West Radio. He will be a guest on RTÉ's Up for the Match programme on Saturday night. The game will also be shown live on a big screen at the Kickham Plaza in Clonmel.
Irish Examiner
3 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
How much money have Cork and Tipp fans spent to watch their teams compete for the Liam MacCarthy Cup?
You can't put on a price on success but fans of Cork and Tipperary have paid more than €1,000 each to follow their teams in this year's Championship. As the Munster rivals prepare for this year's All-Ireland hurling final on Sunday, there has been plenty of discussion about the sheer size of the travelling support, and fans have put their money where their mouths are to shout on their heroes. A fan from Cork who has watched his team's progress this year will have paid out around €1,000 for the privilege, with Premier fans facing a similar bill. Cork fans will have trekked 1,700kms to support their team over the course of Championship 2025, taking in trips to Ennis, Limerick (twice), and Dublin along the way of their seven-match run. Match tickets for a seat in the stand in Cork's run to the final cost €350, with a souvenir match programme for each game adding a further €38. Fans who have taken road trips to see their heroes will have paid an estimated €200 on petrol, and a further €23 on tolls. With added costs like food, drink, and parking, the price for a Cork fan rounds off close to €1,000 this Championship season. Fans who stayed over in Ennis, Limerick, and Dublin will have paid a further €600 on accommodation. Those who have opted to celebrate victories in champagne style will have spent plenty more. Meanwhile Tipperary fans have a shorter distance to Croke Park but have taken a more circuitous route, with Liam Cahill's men playing a All-Ireland preliminary quarter-final away to Laois and a quarter-final against Galway in Limerick on their seven-match journey. That's on top of their trips to Ennis and Cork and their epic win over Kilkenny in Croke Park. The extra match means a hefty fuel bill for the added road trip, along with added tolls. The Rebels and Tipp sold out the national league final in Páirc Uí Chaoimh in April, and the hype machine has gone into overdrive on Leeside since. All of Cork's games in the Munster Hurling Championship sold out, as did their Munster final with Limerick and their All-Ireland semi-final meeting with Dublin. Last year's Munster senior hurling championship brought in gate receipts of €6.794m for the GAA and this year's is likely to exceed that figure. Croke Park holds more than 82,000 supporters including around 10,000 premium and corporate tickets. With huge expectation ahead of the final, some premium ticket packages are being resold in unofficial channels for as much as €1,000.
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Rory McIlroy keeps cool head as he banishes ghosts of past with Masters champ continuing hot streak at The Open
RORY McILROY kept his head among the intense adulation of his home crowd as he shot a one-under-par 70 in the first round of The Open at Portrush. The Northern Irishman had crumbled under similar pressure when the event was last held at the course in 2019 - taking a quadruple-bogey eight at the first hole and missing the cut. 1 Rory McIlroy banished the ghosts of his past with a calm performance at The Open Credit: Getty But the Masters champion, who completed a career Grand Slam at Augusta in April, is just three shots off the lead after a day when he was wayward off the tee but hot on the greens. 'That's a great position to be in but at the same time it brings some added pressure because I didn't want to let them down. 'I dealt with that pressure pretty well - I certainly dealt with it better than I did six years ago! 'I am happy to give myself a good start and get myself into the tournament. 'I'm surprised four-under is leading, a thought someone would go out and shoot six or seven under 'I knew what to expect, it wasn't new to me playing at an Open at home, and that experience definitely helped. 'I didn't feel I was walking into the unknown, unlike last time when I hadn't experienced this before.' Most read in Golf BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS McIlroy sank a crucial 12-foot putt for par on the 15th, having carded three bogeys in the previous four holes - before a birdie on 17 left him under par for the round. He said: 'That par putt on 15 was a big one having bogeyed three of the last four. The Open Faces Tee Time Chaos Amid Parade Clash in Portrush 'That was a huge putt, it kept whatever momentum I had and then to go one under for the final three was pleasing. 'The wind picked up a bit on the back nine and that made it more difficult. 'It was a tough day, spending a lot of time in the rough and fairway bunkers, so to shoot under par is a bonus.'
