Airplane Flies over Royal Troon Golf Course in Viral Photo from 2024 British Open

Spectators at the 2024 British Open likely weren't expecting this.

As Royal Troon Golf Course in Troon, Scotland sits near a runway, an airplane was photographed right above the crowd at The Open. The plane appeared to be just a bit too close for comfort, causing the photo to go viral on social media:

While the airplane didn't hinder any of the players, the weather conditions led to a tough day for some of golf's biggest stars.

Bryson DeChambeau, who is coming off his second career win at the U.S. Open last month, carded a 5-over 76 in Thursday's first round.

"[The wind] was in and off the right, and I was trying to draw the ball and the ball was knuckling a little bit," DeChambeau said after the round, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach. "It was a really difficult challenge, and I should have just cut the ball."

Rory McIlroy, who faced DeChambeau in a one-shot playoff at the U.S. Open and came up short, finished at 7-over 78. He particularly had trouble on the par-three eighth hole, which is the Postage Stamp where the plane was photographed, hitting his shot into a green-side bunker and recording a double-bogey.

"[It was a] difficult day," McIlroy said. "I felt like I did OK for the first part of the round and then missed the green at the Postage Stamp there and left it in and made a double. But still, I felt like I was in reasonable enough shape being a couple over through 9, thinking that I could maybe get those couple shots back, try to shoot even par, something like that."

Perhaps Friday's second round will bring clearer skies, both with the weather and the air traffic.