British Open Leaderboard 2019: Latest Scores and Standings From Thursday

Rory McIlroy's first round on home soil at The Open has not gone as planned. 

The 30-year-old from Northern Ireland struggled on the front nine at Royal Portrush Golf Club to put himself in a hole before making the turn Thursday morning. 

On the opposite end of the leaderboard, Shane Lowry produced the lowest score of the morning session with a four-under 67. 

Sergio Garcia, Alex Noren and Webb Simpson also carded strong rounds to put themselves near the top of the leaderboard in rainy conditions on the Dunluce Course at Royal Portrush.

British Open Leaderboard

Shane Lowry (-4) 

Robert MacIntyre (-3) 

Dylan Frittelli (-3) 

Alex Noren (-3) 

Webb Simpson (-3) 

Sergio Garcia (-3) 

Full leaderboard can be found on TheOpen.com.

Lowry took advantage of the front nine to establish himself as the first-round leader. 

The Irishman birdied No. 3, No. 5 and No. 9 to set the tone for his round, which also featured birdies at No. 10 and No. 12.

Jon Super/Associated Press

The only blemish on Lowry's scorecard was a bogey at the par-four 11th hole, but he rebounded right away with his final birdie at the par-five 12th. 

The first-round 67 was a reversal in form at The Open for Lowry, who has missed the cut at the major four consecutive times. 

However, Lowry is the owner of a top-10 finish at the tournament in 2014, and he earned a tie for eighth at the PGA Championship.

Noren, Garcia, Simpson and Dylan Frittelli all put together a three-under 68 to kick off the tournament and land one shot beneath Lowry. 

Garcia put together a run of birdies from the seventh to 12th holes to put himself in contention, which has been a rare occurrence since he captured the green jacket at The Masters in 2017. 

Fritelli may be the best story of the leaders, as he clinched a spot in The Open field with a victory at the John Deere Classic last weekend. 

The South African also took advantage of the middle holes on the course by recording birdies at No. 8, No. 11 and No. 12, as well as the 15th hole, but he finished his round with a bogey at the 18th. 

While the leaders have caught our attention, no player has been talked about more than McIlroy because of his brutal opening nine. 

McIlroy's round began with a quadruple-bogey at the first round after his first tee shot went out of bounds. 

After a par at No. 2, McIlroy dropped another shot to the course with a bogey at the par-three third hole. 

The four-time major winner has been able to right the ship a bit since his disastrous start with six pars and a pair of birdies. 

However, he is still mired at three-over through 11 holes, which puts him seven shots back of Lowry. 

Even if he rallies with a few more birdies on the back nine, the 30-year-old is likely going to be stuck chasing the leaders during Friday's second round. 

The start was disappointing for McIlroy because he entered the tournament as a favorite and is playing his first major on home soil. 

McIlroy still has time to rebound on the back nine, and it is likely the golfers in the afternoon tee times do not put up many low scores because of the poor conditions. 

If he finishes strong, McIlroy can at least put some positive spin on the round and try to come out Friday and erase the bad taste of the poor start. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from PGATour.com and TheOpen.com.