British Open 2011 Leaderboard: Why Rory McIlroy Failed to Impress on Day 1

It wasn't the way Rory McIlroy would've drawn it up ahead of time. But he'll take it.

McIlroy shrugged off bogeys on two of his first three holes to card a one-over-par 71 during the first round of the 2011 Open Championship.

His performance puts him six shots off the pace set by co-leaders Thomas Bjorn and amateur Tom Lewis who each finished with five-under-par 65s.

It seemed as though McIlroy needed to kick off a little rust from a month-long competitive hiatus since winning the U.S. Open Championship in record breaking fashion. But his patience paid off as he was able to grind out a one under par score over his last 15 holes.

"Mentally, I was very good," McIlroy said in his post-round presser. "I felt I could have hit it in the fairway a bit more. I missed a few fairways, and from there you can't really give yourself many chances for birdies. I holed a few nice putts for par in the middle of the round, and that's what you need to do, especially in majors when they're in tough conditions like this."

There was the par at No. 4. The up-and-down from left of the green on No. 5. And then the birdie on No. 8. They were all vital occurrences on a day that was highlighted by McIlroy's ability to work his way through the round and keep himself alive when things could've gone south in a hurry.

"I was a little disappointed I didn't take advantage of the two par-5s," he continued. "I put myself in good positions off the tee there and only made two pars. But it was definitely a round, after the start, that could have got away from me. And it was nice to hang onto it."

McIlroy's score doesn't impress the way his opening round 63 did a year ago. But in a tournament that's sure to be a marathon not a sprint—and where every player is bound to find at least one day when they struggle—it keeps his hopes of an Open Championship alive.