VIRGINIA WATER, England – Ludvig Åberg and Tom Vaillant lead the leaderboard after the first round of the BMW PGA Championship, which was interrupted by weather at Wentworth on Thursday.
Åberg, selected by the European Ryder Cup team, delivered a card of 64 strokes, eight under par, to share the top.
Rory McIlroy, recent winner of the Irish Open, had a bittersweet day. Despite birdies on several holes, a mistake on the 18th hole led him to the water, finishing with a bogey and a round of 69 strokes, remaining five strokes behind the leaders.
The suspension of the game due to lack of light at 7:30 p.m. forced the players to complete their rounds on Friday morning. A 90-minute delay due to adverse weather conditions also affected the development of the day.
Casey Jarvis finished alone in third place, one stroke off the top.
Åberg, after an initial bogey, maintained his impeccable game with birdies on several holes, culminating his round with three consecutive birdies.
Most of the members of the European Ryder Cup team were present at Wentworth, with the exception of Sepp Straka, who is at home with his wife after a premature birth.
Matt Fitzpatrick, also selected by captain Luke Donald, was two strokes behind the leaders, while Justin Rose and Shane Lowry were one stroke away.
The former number one, Jon Rahm, achieved three birdies in the last four holes, finishing with 71 strokes.
