PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland (AP) — A brief look at the first round of the British Open at Royal Portrush (all times EDT):
AT THE TOP: Matt Fitzpatrick, Harris English, Jacob Skov Olesen, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Li Haotong were tied at 4-under 67.
LURKING: Scottie Scheffler was among those one shot behind.
HOME HERO: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland made a late birdie for a 70 and was three shots behind. The last time he played the British Open at Royal Portrush, he made an 8 on the first hole, shot 79 and wound up missing the cut.
LONG DAY: Because of wind and rain, and a few lost balls in the high grass, three reachable par 5s and a reachable par 4, rounds took nearly six hours to complete. That last group finished at shortly after 10 p.m. local time.
SENIOR CITIZENS: Lee Westwood (69), Phil Mickelson (70) and Justin Leonard (70) are all over age 50 and broke par in the opening round.
FADING: Bryson DeChambeau, who missed the cut at the U.S. Open last month, shot 78.
SHOT OF THE DAY: Matt Fitzpatrick holed a chip from well below the par-3 16th green for birdie.
KEY STATISTIC: This is the largest tie for the lead after 18 holes in the British Open since there was a six-way tie in 1938 at Royal St. George's.
NOTEWORTHY: Scottie Scheffler hit only three fairways and shot 68.
QUOTEWORTHY: “I didn’t feel like I was walking into the unknown this time around, where last time I hadn’t experienced that before. I hadn’t played an Open at home.” — Rory McIlroy.
TELEVISION: Friday, 1:30 a.m. to 4 a.m. (Peacock), 4 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (USA Network).
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Justin Rose of England, right, plays a shot on the 17th hole during the first round of the British Open golf championship at the Royal Portrush Golf Club, Northern Ireland, Thursday, July 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out at Australia’s leader on Sunday while nations expressed shock and sympathy over a mass shooting at a Jewish holiday event, saying he had warned Prime Minister Anthony Albanese that “your call for a Palestinian state pours fuel on the antisemitic fire.”
Netanyahu during the war in Gaza has repeatedly sought to link widespread calls for a Palestinian state, and criticism of Israel’s military offensive in the territory following Hamas' 2023 attack, to growing incidents of antisemitism worldwide.
While others in Israel’s government on Sunday also urged Australia to do more against a sharp rise in antisemitic attacks, Netanyahu went further in attempting to link the attack in Sydney that killed at least 11 people, including an Israeli, to support for a Palestinian state.
Australia was among several countries formally recognizing a Palestinian state in September during the United Nations gathering of world leaders. According to the Palestinian Foreign Ministry, 159 countries have recognized Palestine. The vast majority of the international community believes that a two-state solution is the only way to end decades of conflict.
Netanyahu's government has said the international push for a Palestinian state rewards Hamas.
Here are some global reactions to the Australia shooting:
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said that “terrorism and the killing of people, wherever they occur, are unacceptable and must be condemned.” Australia in August cut off diplomatic relations with Iran and accused it of masterminding antisemitic arson attacks in Sydney and Melbourne.
President Donald Trump called the shooting “a purely antisemitic attack,” and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that “antisemitism has no place in this world.”
King Charles III said he was “appalled and saddened.” He also leads the Commonwealth, and the office of Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Sunday said Herzog had reached out to the king in September warning of an “epidemic of antisemitism” in three Commonwealth countries: Britain, Canada and Australia.
Meanwhile, police in London said they would step up security at Jewish sites.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the attack “has left me speechless” and added that “this is an attack on our shared values. We must stop this antisemitism, here in Germany and worldwide.”
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was horrified and that “My heart is with the Jewish community worldwide on this first day of Hannukah, a festival celebrating the miracle of peace and light vanquishing darkness.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the “ghastly terrorist attack” and said that “we stand in solidarity with the people of Australia in this hour of grief.”
The organization's president, Ronald Lauder, said that “No community should ever fear coming together to celebrate its faith, traditions, or identity,” adding: “Make no mistake, this will not break us."
"I’m surrounded by antisemitic graffiti constantly. I think for our community in the east (of Sydney), and as a Christian, I just want to declare I stand with the people of Israel,” Anglican pastor Matt Graham told Australian Broadcasting Corp. He said he had been conducting a service at the nearby Bondi Anglican Church when panicked people began entering to take shelter.
Police cordon off an area at Bondi Beach after a reported shooting in Sydney, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)
