Contending:

- Scheffler, Hatton, Fitzpatrick, Harris English, Rahm, Lowry, Fowler

Vacation starts tomorrow:

- Bryson, Pat Reed, Koepka, Morikawa

Royal Portrush looked fantastic on TV today, and I’m thrilled to watch tomorrow. NBC did well to highlight driving targets. The tracers were on point. Besides the persistent “playing through” commercials, the production couldn’t be much better. Oh, what’s that, you want to know what happened? Well, the early groups benefited from drier, calmer weather. The wind kicked up for Rory’s back 9. Scott Scheff hit three fairways all day but he’s only one back. Watching these pros stop the ball at all on these greens is a treat. For the rest of us, it’s a very different golf course and a significant challenge to hold an approach shot.

The galleries were fantastic. More than 200k people are expected to descend on the town of Portrush (6k residents). NBC did a great job capturing scenes of the harbor, reminding people that all of Northern Ireland is about the size of Connecticut, and even flashing scenes from Rory’s home club, Hollywood GC.

Only about 40 competitors are from America. This is truly an international tournament and a great representation of how golf comes in all kinds of forms. Close your eyes and think back to May. You’re watching the PGA Championship from Quail Hollow. Sure the grass is green, the rough is thick, and the Tour is debuting new tracer technology, but are you remotely as interested in the shotmaking that is being demonstrated at Portrush? No. You’re not. That’s to say nothing of the dunes, the ocean, and the incredible green complexes. This is major championship golf and we get three more days to soak it up.