Rory McIlroy at Honda Classic 2016: Thursday Score and Reaction

Coming off a disastrous 75 in the final round last week at Riviera, Rory McIlroy got off to a bad start at the 2016 Honda Classic with a two-over-par 72 in the first round Thursday.

McIlroy was all over the map on the front nine, producing three bogeys and two birdies, but looked as though he was rebounding after making the turn with consecutive birdies on Nos. 12 and 13 to get under par. 

Unfortunately, all of that momentum was undone by a dreadful double bogey on No. 14, which put McIlroy back where he was after the front nine. He ended the day in fitting fashion, three-putting the final hole to take a bogey on a par five into the clubhouse.

Here's a look at McIlroy's first-round scorecard as well as the leaderboard at the Honda Classic:

Hole	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Out
Hole	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	In
Par	4	4	5	4	3	4	3	4	4	35
Score	5	4	4	4	3	4	4	3	5	36
Total	+1	+1	E	E	E	E	+1	E	+1	-
Par	4	4	4	4	4	3	4	3	5	35
Score	4	4	3	3	6	2	5	3	6	36
Total	+1	+1	E	-1	+1	E	+1	+1	+2	-

Putting was an area of concern for McIlroy early, as he cost himself more than one stroke on the green. It's no surprise, though, that his brief turnaround on the back nine coincided with a return to form with his putter. He needed a total of three putts on Nos. 12, 13 and 15.

When McIlroy fell into trouble, the putter was his worst enemy. In addition to his mess on the final hole, he needed 16 putts on the front nine.

Some aspects of McIlroy's game have been off so far in 2016, despite his insistence that his game was where it needed to be prior to the event, via the Golf Channel:

McIlroy's slow start seemed like a cause for concern coming on the heels of how he ended the Northern Trust Open, but there's a reason why fans regard him as one of the best players in the world: There's a light switch that he can turn on at any moment.

Yet because golf is a humbling game, McIlroy would have to consider this one of his most unusual rounds on the PGA Tour. There's no other way to describe a five-hole stretch that features three birdies, a double bogey and a bogey.

There is a reasonable explanation for what happened to McIlroy, as well as other players in the field, per Mark Paquette:

It doesn't help matters that McIlroy hit a fairway bunker on his first shot at No. 14 and promptly followed it up with a shot that traveled only 41 yards, leaving him 153 yards away from the hole. 

Even though the wind didn't prevent McIlroy from averaging 317 yards with his driver or hitting a terrific 71.4 percent of the fairways, those kinds of gusts can throw off a player's balance during the back swing or while standing over the ball on the green.

McIlroy isn't going to use that as an excuse for what happened Thursday, nor should he. But his raw numbers don't fully explain how things could be going so well one moment, then so poorly the next. 

Putting improvement will be of critical importance for McIlroy, as he cost himself nearly 1.9 strokes on the greens. It's not a coincidence that he finished two over par.

Of course, circling back to last week at the Northern Trust Open, before McIlroy's 75 on Sunday, he had three consecutive rounds in the 60s and was hovering near the top of the leaderboard. He's still piecing together his game, regardless of what he might say in a pre-tournament press conference. 

According to Justin Ray of the Golf Channel, a bad start for McIlroy doesn't bode well for his chances at the tournament:

McIlroy has a lot of work to do. He hasn't had to deal with adversity yet this year, boasting two top-10 finishes on the European Tour and a decent PGA Tour debut last week, but his last two rounds indicate something isn't working.

McIlroy's career will be defined by how he performs in the biggest tournaments, but if he doesn't perform well in the events that lead up to those, it's going to be a long year for the former world No. 1. 

Stats per PGATour.com.