Rory McIlroy's season looks to be heading for another low point after his start at the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England.
5 bogeys and 4 pars in his opening nine holes has left him in real trouble already and his chances of adding a second Open Championship to his Major haul all but impossible.
The four time major winner has struggled to put any kind of consistent form together form together this season and he has yet to win a tournament all year.
McIlroy was actually talking up his chances this week at the press conference, pre tournament,
Good time to back me, I think but if I was a betting company and I saw my form over the past few weeks you would say, yeah, that's probably a fair enough price.
But again, all it takes is one week for those odds to go back to, I don't know, 7/1, 8/1 at Quail Hollow (for next month's US PGA Championship). So as I say, good week to back me.
Although he has has finished inside the top 10 in five competitions, including tied for seventh at the US Masters, he has also missed a number of cuts, including at the US Open and his last two tournament, the Irish and Scottish Opens.
And after his start today, it will take a miracle if the world number four is to buck that trend this week.
His day got off to a ropey start on the first hole when he sank a 3o foot putt for bogey, a par on the second which might have settled him but that was as good as it got as he bogeyed the next four holes before closing out with three pars to shoot a horrendous looking 39 for the four time major winner.
The tournament leaders Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka and Matt Kuchar sit on an impressive -5, leaving McIlroy already 10 shots behind.
With tomorrow's weather set to include 40kmph winds, something he has traditionally struggled with at this tournament, it's a long way back for the man from Holywood.
