His method shot on the twelfth nonetheless completed six toes from the outlet, enabling the four-time main champion to safe a birdie.
“Fortunately the ball went the place I needed it to – it may have been lots worse,” McIlroy mentioned.
An eventful first spherical additionally noticed him putt left-handed at one level, whereas his tee shot on the seventeenth bounced out of the bushes, and he additionally hit his method to the 18th out of bounds.
Final week’s Irish Open runner-up is aiming to repeat his solely earlier success within the PGA Championship again in 2014 and likewise make an extra transfer in direction of clinching a sixth DP World Tour Race to Dubai crown.
“5 beneath, I’d have taken that firstly of the day, particularly as a result of the wind is getting up and the closing stretch is taking part in fairly robust,” McIlroy mentioned.
“I performed nicely and it was a little bit of a continuation of what I used to be feeling final week.”
McIlroy misplaced out by one shot to Dane Rasmus Hojgaard at Royal County Down final weekend, having loved a four-shot lead at one level throughout the ultimate spherical.
“Getting on to a course – taking part in RCD for 4 days and coming right here appears like getting a little bit of breather and a bit extra room to play,” McIlroy added.
“It is good to really feel a bit extra freedom off the tee. It was a strong begin.”