Rory McIlroy cheered by ‘great start’ as he seeks back-to-back Masters victories

Defending champion Rory McIlroy basked in the warm Georgia sunshine and the glory of his return to Augusta to lay down a marker in his bid for rare back-to-back Masters wins with a share of the first-round lead.

The Northern Irishman, seeking to become only the fourth man after Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Sir Nick Faldo to retain the green jacket, burst into life following a nondescript seven holes in which he struggled with his driving.

A brilliant approach to the long, steeply-uphill eighth brought his second birdie of the day and moved him back into red figures and he hit it even closer at the next to turn in two under.

That was two behind the then-leaders Patrick Reed, the 2018 champion, and fellow American Sam Burns but McIlroy pressed the accelerator from there.

The saying in these parts is the Master does not start until the back nine on a Sunday but the world number two shifted through the gears McIlroy with a birdie at the 13th, the hole he doubled-bogeyed from 90 yards in his final round a year ago, having driven into the pine straw.

He rolled in a six-foot birdie at the next before finding himself behind the same trees on the left-hand side of the 15th fairway, from where he produced one of the shots of his career 12 months ago.

There were too many trunks to go around this time, however, and with discretion the better part of valour he opted to go through and under, pitched to back of the green and then holed a wicked, downhill curling putt for his fifth birdie in eight holes.

He was close to another birdie at the 17th and produced a great recovery from a fairway bunker at the last.

With the sun and breeze making the already fast greens harder and even more slippery, his five-under 67 – to join Burns at the top of the leaderboard – set the target for fellow Masters champions Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler who were among the late starters.

“I thought I would feel different but then I put my tee in the ground and my ball on the tee on the first hole and I felt the same nerves I always feel,” said McIlroy about the start of his defence.

“I felt I settled into my round quickly. Wherever I hit it on this course I’ve seen it all over the past 18 years so I always think I can figure it out, get to the front of the green and find a par. I did that on the front nine.

“I was swinging freely even when I was missing tee shots on the front nine, I still kept swinging away, I didn’t get tentative, hoping sooner or later I’d find it and I did.

“I started to swing some good swings from the eighth hole and started to play some good golf.”

His round was a vast improvement on 12 months ago, when he only managed to shoot a level-par 72.

“It’s a great start, I’m right in the tournament and it’s a lot better than starting from seven behind going into the second round like I was last year.

“But I can’t get ahead of myself as there’s a long way to go but (I’m) feeling good where I’m at.”

The 2018 champion Reed, fellow American Kurt Kitayama and Australian Jason Day all shot 69s to lie joint-second, two strokes back.

However, one of the pre-tournament favourites Bryson DeChambeau had a triple-bogey seven after taking three to get out of a greenside bunker at the 11th as he signed for a four-over 76.