McIlroy and Power make strong starts at Wells Fargo

It was a happy birthday for Rory McIlroy who celebrated turning 34 by shooting an excellent first-round 68 at the Wells Fargo Championship on Thursday.

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McIloy was among the early starters at Quail Hollow and made hay, carding four birdies - and a solitary bogey on the seventh - to get home in three-under, two off clubhouse leaders Kevin Streelman, Kyoung-Hoon Lee and Taylor Moore.

Seamus Power is on two-under following a very solid 69.

This is McIlroy's first outing since a hugely disappointing Masters, where he failed to make the cut.

"I needed a break for me," the Northern Irishman told Golf Channel on Wednesday.

"Obviously, after the disappointment of Augusta, and it's been a pretty taxing 12 months mentally, it was nice to just try to disconnect and get away from it. But it's nice to come back and feel refreshed.

"I think I'm in a better headspace than I was... you know, that run-up to Augusta is always a stressful enough couple of weeks trying to make sure everything's in the right order and making sure your game's in good shape.

"I think for me it was a nice reset because I still had to realise that there's three more majors this year, there's a ton left to play for."