The allegation levelled at the two-time major champion was that he had improved his stance as he attempted to escape from deep rough on the fifth.

The Masters champion ensured he made the cut with a second-round 67 on Friday.

The Australian carded nine birdies – eight coming in his first 12 holes.

The 37-year-old was hoping to move in contention after a slow start on Thursday.

Conditions were favourable for Friday’s early starters.

The Masters champion was seven shots off the pace after the first round at Royal Birkdale.

Jackson Suber was the unlikely name at the top of the Royal Birkdale leaderboard but the limelight belonged to DeChambeau.

The Masters champion missed numerous opportunities at Royal Birkdale and ran up six bogeys.

Many players have already made changes to their bag to take advantage of the extra roll-out on the fairways.

The Open hopefuls both independently gave answers contemplating their own mortality ahead of this year’s Championship at Royal Birkdale.

After successfully defending his Masters title in April, McIlroy’s major performances have dwindled.

The 15-time major winner is not exempt for next month’s US Open.

Last week’s Open Championship at Royal Portrush Golf Club was the second-best attended in the tournament’s history.

The American is three quarters of the way to emulating McIlroy’s career grand slam.

The former US senator said it was a ‘special treat’ to return to the region for the tournament at Royal Portrush.

Scheffler scored an eagle and birdie in back-to-back holes to open up a gap.

The Northern Irishman has moved within four shots of leader Scottie Scheffler.

The 38-year-old’s tee shot at the 199-yard 13th took three bounces before disappearing into the hole.

The £30 million course will be located at Bellarena

The Masters champion missed the cut last time the Open was staged on the Northern Irish links in 2019.

Tommy Fleetwood is England’s top-ranked player at 13.

The 2019 champion is a shot behind surprise leader Daniel Brown following the opening day.

The Northern Irishman was 10 shots behind clubhouse leader Justin Thomas.

McIlroy briefly held a two-shot lead with five holes to play at Pinehurst, but bogeyed three of the last four to miss out.