• St Jude Classic, Round One

McIlroy on the way back after 68

Rory McIlroy looked more assured than he has done of late © PA Photos

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Rory McIlroy made a timely return to form to card a morale-boosting two-under 68 on the first day of the St Jude Classic in Memphis.

Having missed the cut in his last three outings, McIlroy was in desperate need of a positive round ahead of next week's US Open. It was by no means perfect, but the Ulsterman at least exorcised some of the demons he has been contending with lately, picking up four birdies as he ended the day two strokes behind leaders Jeff Maggert and John Merrick.

Beginning on the back nine, McIlroy eased any early nerves with two birdies from his first five holes. Four straight pars helped consolidate his position, seeing him reach the turn in 33, and his confidence grew further when picking up another shot at the par-four first. However, the 2011 US Open champion, who found only half of his greens and less than half of his fairways, could not maintain his charge and was left to rue two bogeys coming in as he finished with a whimper.

In the main, he will be buoyed by a sub-70 score and he looked more comfortable on the course than he has done in recent weeks. Of particular note was his excellent putting, with the former world No. 1 requiring only 25 swings of the short stick.

Maggert entered the week having missed the cut in nine of his last 12 starts but the American hit his stride to post a first round in the 60s in his last 14 on the PGA Tour. Four birdies, three of which arrived in a row, saw him head to the front nine moving with a swagger.

An eagle at the par-five third eclipsed Maggert's earlier efforts, before two late bogeys saw him fall back to four-under for a 66. Merrick, meanwhile, saw an opportunity to claim the overnight lead slip through his grasp as he bogeyed the par-five 18.

Jeff Overton is one of four players giving chase on three-under following a 67, while three-time major champion Padraig Harrington sits alongside McIlroy on two-under. India's Arjun Atwal, Seung-Yul Noh of South Korea and American J.J. Henry moved to three-under on the opening day.

Harrington's 2010 Ryder Cup team-mate Graeme McDowell did not fare so well, however, with the Northern Irishman imploding en route to a dire five-over 75. The 2010 US Open victor made a solitary birdie in an otherwise dismal 18 holes, that included four bogeys and a double-bogey six at the par-four 15th.

Sweden's Robert Karlsson also laboured on Thursday, shooting a two-over 72 to leave himself with a lot of work ahead. Karlsson finished runner-up at the tournament last year to Harrison Frazar, who had a day to forget as he shot a 10-over which included a triple-bogey on the par-four ninth.

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