Scottie Scheffler of the United States plays his tee shot on the 6th tee during the first round of the British Open golf championship at the Royal Portrush Golf Club, Northern Ireland, Thursday. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland (AP) — Sunlight streaked through a few low-hanging clouds when Padraig Harrington opened the British Open with a piercing 3-iron into the wind. Darkness began covering Royal Portrush nearly 16 hours later Thursday night when the final group trudged off the 18th green.

One of the longest days was also among the more fickle in the 165 years of this major.

Five players from five countries tied for the lead at 4-under 67, the biggest logjam in this championship since 1938. There was sun and there was rain, a wee breeze and big gusts, and the Open wasn’t even three hours old.

The one predictable part Thursday: Scottie Scheffler right in the mix.

And what make the massive throng at Royal Portrush tolerate rounds that approached six hours was seeing their favorite son, Rory McIlroy, birdie the 17th to recover from a bad patch on the back nine and join the 31 players who broke par.

Former U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick of England handled the notorious “Calamity Corner” par-3 16th by chipping in for birdie. Harris English, the unflappable American whose longtime caddie couldn’t get a travel visa for the UK because of prison time served 20 years ago, put his short-game coach on the bag and made seven birdies.

They were joined by Li Haotong of China, Christiaan Bezuidenhout of South Africa and Jacob Skov Olesen of Denmark.

One shot behind was Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 player who has not finished out of the top 10 in the last four months, a stretch that includes another major among three wins.

McIlroy made bogey on the opening hole with an entire country behind him — that was still three shots better than his start in 2019 — and overcame three bogeys in a four-hole stretch with a key birdie on No. 17 that allowed him to break par at 70.

“Certainly dealt with it better than I did six years ago,” said McIlroy, who hit only two fairways. “I was just happy to get off to a good start and get myself into the tournament.”

Scheffler only hit three fairways in his round of 68.

It’s not that golf’s best were necessary wild off the tee. There was that small matter of weather, often the greatest defense of links golf, which brought the occasional rain, the constant wind and rounds that nearly last six hours.

That’s why Scheffler seemed perplexed about so much attention on his accuracy off the tee.

“You’re the second guy that’s mentioned that to me,” Scheffler said. “I actually thought I drove it pretty good. I don’t know what you guys are seeing. When it’s raining sideways, believe it or not (it’s) not that easy to get the ball in the fairway.

“Really only had one swing I wasn’t too happy with on the second hole,” he said. “But outside that, I felt like I hit a lot of good tee shots, hit the ball really solid, so definitely a good bit of confidence for the next couple of rounds.”

There also was his 4-iron to 3 feet on the 16th for birdie, the start of birdie-birdie-par finish.

But no one could go extremely low.

Olesen, the British Amateur champion last year, was the first player to get to 5 under until a bogey at the last. Bezuidenhout was the only player from the afternoon wave to join the crowd at the top.