Rory McIlroy hits hole in one at 2023 Travelers Championship

Rory McIlroy hit his first career ace on the PGA Tour on Thursday in the first round of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Connecticut.

The hole-in-one came from 214 yards out on the par-3 eighth hole with a five-iron. Up until that shot, McIlroy had been +1 through seven holes, including back-to-back bogeys on the fourth and fifth holes due to poor putting.

He followed that shot up with a birdie on the ninth hole, which put him six strokes off leader Keegan Bradley’s -8 through the first round. McIlroy finished in the top 20 in all of his four career appearances at Travelers. He’s never finished better than tied for 11th, though.

McIlroy entered this week’s tournament on the heels of a second-place finish at the 2023 U.S. Open in Los Angeles. He finished one shot behind first-time major winner Wyndham Clark. Although that was his best finish at that tournament, McIlroy hasn’t won a major since 2014 when he took home the PGA Championship and the British Open.