British Open Tee Times 2017: Pairings and Predictions for Friday Schedule

The order is reversed for Round 2 of the 2017 British Open, meaning Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson will be among the early tee times at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, Merseyside, on Friday.

McIlroy and Johnson both finished on one over par after the opening day, leaving them trailing leading trio Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka and Matt Kuchar by six shots.

Johnson and McIlroy will be paired together with Charl Schwartzel and begin their round at 9:47 a.m. BST/ 4:47 a.m. ET. Meanwhile, Spieth will get started at 14:48 p.m. BST/9:48 a.m. ET and be joined by Henrik Stenson and Kim Si-woo.

Dave Thompson/Associated Press

The full list of tee times and pairings for the Open's second day is available at the tournament's official website.

Action can be viewed on Sky Sports in the UK and streamed on Sky Go. NBC's Golf Channel will broadcast the round in the U.S. and provide live streaming.

A live stream is also available at the tournament's official website.

McIlroy just about stayed in touch after recovering from five bogeys over the first six holes. Yet the 28-year-old was bogey free on the back nine, per the tournament's official Twitter account:

Finishing on 71 was a terrific achievement after the way he had begun, but McIlroy still has it all to do in the second round. The same is true of Johnson, who managed just one birdie on the opening day.

Fortunately, both players are capable of turning on the style and making up the difference with strong rounds.

Expect McIlroy to put his early sluggishness behind him and settle on Day 2. He needs a low round but still hasn't quite returned to his peak form, so a score of 68 seems the best he can hope for.

While a lot of attention will focus on McIlroy, Johnson and Spieth, one player who could again snatch the headlines is U.S. Open winner Brooks Koepka. He will be paired with Hideki Matsuyama and Tommy Fleetwood.

Koepka got his tournament started in style with an opening round score of 65. He was superb on the back nine, rolling in this trio of birdies:

Koepka also produced this outstanding shot at the 17th, relayed by the European Tour official Twitter feed:

Of the leading three, Koepka is playing well enough to keep his place. A round of 65-7 is well within the range of a player still riding the momentum and confidence earned at the U.S. Open.

While Koepka ended the day in fine fashion, Ian Poulter had started well. The 41-year-old shot a 67, a new standard for him, per Justin Ray of the Golf Channel:

Poulter will tee off in the afternoon, alongside Swede Alex Noren and Scotland's Russell Knox. He took to Twitter to express his hope the weather will be on his side:

Although he usually prefers the one against one nature of the Ryder Cup to playing the course in an Open, expect a typically fired-up Poulter to post a similar score in the high 60s in the second round.

Poulter will keep the chase on the front trio, but Koepka in particular looks in fine form after Day 1. However, don't count out McIlroy just yet, especially after his strong recovery on the back nine.

He will put himself in a strong position ahead of the third round.