Irish Open 2017: Benjamin Hebert, Daniel Im Share Lead After Thursday Action

Benjamin Hebert and Daniel Im share the lead after Round 1 of the 2017 Irish Open on Thursday. The pair finished eight-under at Portstewart Golf Club in Northern Ireland, one shot ahead of Jon Rahm and English pair Oliver Fisher and Matthew Southgate in third.

Meanwhile, defending champion and tournament host Rory McIlroy enjoyed a tough day, only managing par.

Here's what the leaderboard looks like after Round 1, per the European Tour official website.

Hebert finished late but ended the front nine with three straight birdies. The Frenchman produced another hat-trick on the back nine, starting at the par-five 13th.

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His run of birdies put Hebert within a shot of a share of the lead with three holes left. A fourth straight birdie on the back nine put Herbert alongside Im at the top.

Par followed on the 17th and 18th, as Hebert's birdies run came to an end, but he'd still done enough to tie for first.

Im also finished eight under thanks in large part to hitting eight birdies over the course. He put together a run of four straight birdies starting on the par-four second.

After managing par at the sixth, Im sank two more birdies to help close out the front nine in style. Things didn't run quite as smoothly on the back nine, but Im still remained bogey free.

The leader maintained his one stroke advantage by rolling in this classy par putt on the 18th, per the European Tour official Twitter account:

Rahm tried to keep pace with some spectacular golf on the back nine. The Spaniard had already eagled the par-five seven but didn't better par again until he reached the 13th. It began a run of three straight birdies for Rahm, as he moved into a tie with Southgate and Fisher.

A missed birdie putt on the 18th meant Rahm didn't earn a share of the lead, but he did enough to prove himself a genuine contender.

Away from the leading pack, McIlroy struggled as he slipped to a bogey on the par-three third. He repeated the gaffe at the sixth.

McIlroy did at least follow each bogey with a birdie, but one of the highlights of his round was this bunker shot to save par on the 12th:

Par was the routine for McIlroy on Day 1, but he'll know he must improve starting Friday.

The onus is on McIlroy to deliver, but he won't find it easy with Hebert, Im and an increasingly impressive Rahm already staking their claims.

All scorecard information per the European Tour official website.