DUBLIN, Ohio -- Whether its his health or his personal life, Rory McIlroy is not easily distracted when hes on top of his game. McIlroy made two eagles and three birdies on the back nine at Muirfield Village -- along with a double bogey -- on his way to a 9-under 63 and a three-shot lead Thursday after the opening round of the Memorial. A week ago, McIlroy began his week at Wentworth by announcing he and tennis star Caroline Wozniacki had broken off their engagement. Then, he went out and won the BMW Championship for his strongest win in more than two years. At the Memorial, McIlroy caught his spikes in the turf on his second shot at the seventh hole and felt pain the rest of the round, especially when he had to put a little extra pop into tee shots or long irons. He was limping when he walked off the stage after talking about how he made five birdies and two eagles after hurting his knee. It was the lowest opening round in 39 years at the Memorial. "I dont think its anything more than just being confident with my game," McIlroy said. "I was expecting this to happen. Ive been playing well. Ive been posting good numbers, good rounds. And I knew my game was close. And honestly, I dont think its anything to do with whats happening off the golf course. Its just Ive been trending in the right direction, and its starting to all come together." Masters champion Bubba Watson, Chris Kirk and Paul Casey each had a 66 while playing in calmer and slightly softer morning conditions. Keegan Bradley was at 67, notable not because it was his best score at Muirfield Village but because it was his first time in his four years on the PGA Tour that he did not use a belly putter. Adam Scott, who won at Colonial last week in his debut at No. 1 in the world, lost momentum with a shot into the water for double bogey on No. 9, and he missed some birdie and eagle chances on the back nine that would have allowed him to stay close with McIlroy. He settled for a 69. Phil Mickelson also looked sharp -- at least for 15 holes. He was at 5 under after a birdie on the 15th hole -- at the time, just one shot out of the lead. But he hit into the water on the par-3 16th and did well to escape with bogey. He came up short on the 17th and muffed two flops shots on his way to double bogey. And he finished with another double bogey by three-putting the 18th. That gave him a 72. "Just threw away a good round," Mickelson said. Canadian Mike Weir finished the day at 1-over 73. The course began to get firm under a hot sun late in the afternoon, which didnt appear to bother McIlroy. Jordan Spieth picked up birdies on the par 5s, had a good par save on the 16th and squeezed out a 69 that left him pleased. "Anything under par is a good score," Spieth said. "Obviously, Rory didnt think that." McIlroy was more than nine shots better than the field average. His only scare came on the seventh hole when his spikes caught and applied a little more torque on his knee. McIlroy said he had never experienced that before, though he felt some ice and work in the fitness trailer should take care of it. "The inside of it is sore, a little swollen," McIlroy said. "Some treatment and I should be fine for the morning." The golf after that was simply spectacular. From the deep rough right of the 10th fairway, he hammered a shot to the middle of the green and it caught a slope and settled 4 feet away. He hit 4-iron to 25 feet on the par-5 11th and holed a 25-foot birdie putt in the centre of the cup. He holed a tough 15-foot birdie on the 13th, and then hit a towering 5-iron to 15 feet on the par-5 15 for another eagle. McIlroy picked up his final birdie with a 12-foot birdie after a great tee shot to the deceptively tough front pin on the par-3. He finished his round with an 8-foot putt to save par from the bunker. His only blunder came on the 14th when he tugged a wedge too hard and too far left into a plugged lie in the bunker. He played well away from the flag to avoid going down the slope and into the water, but left it in the sand. His next shot had to be good to get within 6 feet of the flag, and it wasnt. The ball ran off the green and down a slope. He had to get up-and-down for a double bogey. McIlroy answered by smashing another tee shot into the fairway and hitting that high 5-iron onto the green for eagle, erasing the double bogey. Its just one round, but considering it was McIlroy, it was an attention-getter. McIlroy is one of those players who can follow up a win with more great play. When he won the PGA Championship by eight shots in 2012, that was the start of three victories in four starts against the strongest fields of the year. Sam Mills Jersey . -- San Francisco 49ers offensive co-ordinator Greg Roman is a finalist to replace Joe Paterno at Penn State, his agent said Monday. 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Custom New Orleans Saints Jerseys . -- Brandon Hope stopped 46 shots and Kurtis MacDermid scored with 27 seconds remaining in overtime as the Owen Sound Attack edged the visiting Kingston Frontenacs 5-4 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action.ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - Denver Broncos right tackle Chris Clark took exception when J.J. Watt pushed him around in a 1-on-1 pass-rushing drill and kept right on motoring toward the imaginary quarterback. Clark finally broke free with a swipe at the Houston Texans star that sent the pass rushers helmet bouncing on the ground. "Dont get mad when you get beat," Watt hollered at Clark. That turned into the theme of Wednesdays joint workout in full pads, one which ended with a lot of jawing and posturing after Texans safety D.J. Swearinger loudly celebrated his interception of Peyton Manning in an 11-on-11 drill. "I picked off Peyton today and I guess that got them a little chippy," Swearinger said. "The offence did great, ran the ball down their throat, so, hey, I would get mad, too. Thats all it is: players making plays and people getting mad." Broncos cornerback Chris Harris said its one thing to pick off Manning and quite another to go all gaga over it. "His swag just went to another level," Harris said. So did the Broncos indignation. "Theres about 200 guys out here," Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib said. "Its hard to avoid." No punches were thrown, however, as is so often is the case in these types of get-togethers. After all, players realize its a little too close to final cuts and the start of the season to risk fighting at practice. "We wanted to stay clean out here," Swearinger said. "Were not out here to start nothing with nobody, were out here to get good work. Both teams got good work. It got a little chippy at the end, but its all football. Its part of the game." Broncos safety Rahim Moore said the chippy moments were actually a good sign. "Theyre no punks and neither are we," Moore said. "So at the end of the day you do all your talking with the pads. Today they had a great day, we had a great day. So I actually like it because theyve got a bunch of competitive guys that we would love to go against each other every day. Its a great way for us to see how we match up, so we love it. Its fun." It wasnt all frayed nerves and trash talking, either. Top draft pick Jadeveon Clowney and star left tackle Ryan Clady battled to a draw several times during the 1-on-1 pass-rushing drills that proved the highlight of the two-hour practice. Cllowney sought out Clady afterward and the two exchanged a fist bump in a show of sportsmanship.dddddddddddd. Clowney later smacked into tight end Jacob Tamme during a 9-on-7 drill and retreated to the Texans medical tent, where he sat out the final 45 minutes of practice. He didnt appear to be getting any sort of treatment, however, and appeared to walk off OK after practice ended. Asked what had happened to Clowney, Texans coach Bill OBrien said, "I dont know. I was in the middle of practice, so Ill find out." The team didnt issue any update, however. The Clowney-Clady matchup was one of the many benefits of the four hours of joint practices so far this week that both head coaches insist far outweigh the inevitable emotions that come with them. "You cant really simulate this when you go against each other," OBrien said. "The competition level rises, you see different schemes. You hear different communication on both sides of the ball. The coaches work together. Were able to talk to Denvers coaches and vice versa about some of the things theyre doing, what theyre looking for, what were looking for. I thought both teams worked very well together." Despite the pick at the end, Manning and the Broncos offence played much better than they had 24 hours earlier when Manning called out his teammates over a sloppy practice. "Im sure a lot of our guys noticed that he wasnt happy on the field," offensive co-ordinator Adam Gase said. "I spoke my mind in the meetings. Im not really going to do it out here for everybody to watch, but I said my piece. We made sure that we came out here and had a better day." The teams have one more joint practice Thursday, this time in shells and shorts, which should further reduce any extracurricular activity, before their preseason game Saturday night. Notes: Broncos WR-PR Jordan Norwood tore his left ACL when he landed awkwardly while going up for a touchdown catch and battling with Texans CB Brandon Harris in a red zone drill. ... Broncos RB Montee Ball participated in his second straight day of workouts following his Aug. 4 appendectomy. Ball said hes lost 6 pounds but likes the way he feels at 209: "I feel a lot faster, a lot more agile," he said. ... Broncos LB Jamar Chaney (hamstring) sat out and TE Jameson Konz left practice after hurting his neck. 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