Rory McIlroy Struggles In First Competitive Round With New Nike Equipment

After the first competitive round using his new Nike equipment, Rory may be asking himself why he made the changes. Rory shot a 3 over 75 that comprised of a lot of wild shots and several double bogeys including one where his drive ended up in a parking lot.

Not surprisingly, McIlroy put his struggles down to "rustiness" rather than anything equipment based. But he did acknowledge that adjusting to his new clubs was an ongoing process.

"My problems were more swing-related than club-related," he insisted. "Whenever the wind was right-to-left I was comfortable enough cutting the ball into it. But when it was blowing the other way I had trouble releasing the shot properly.

"When you go out with new stuff you are always going to be a little bit anxious. I was hoping I was going to hit it on the course like I have on the range, but today that wasn't quite the case. Still, I learned a few things. Apart from that one shot on the par 3, my irons were pretty good. Hopefully I can put them into play tomorrow.

"I'll be out on the range this afternoon, working on it. I obviously need to play a bit better if I'm going to make it to the weekend. It wasn't all bad, though. While this obviously wasn't the round I was looking for, there were a few good signs out there."

HERE'S WHAT IS IN RORY'S NEW NIKE BAG

DRIVER: Nike VR_S Covert Tour Driver (9.5°)degree, neutral position
FAIRWAY WOODS: Nike VR Pro Limited Edition 3-wood/15-degree and 5-wood/19-degree
IRONS: Nike VR Pro Blades (3-PW)
WEDGES: Nike VR Pro Wedges (54°, 60°)
PUTTER: Nike Method 006 prototype
BALL: Nike 20XI X

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