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McIlroy opens with 71, 4 shots behind Karlsson (The Associated Press)

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Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy, right, plays with Niall Horan from One Direction during the Pro-Am at the 2015 BMW PGA Championship at the Wentworth Golf Club, Surrey, England, Wednesday, May 20, 2015. (Adam Davy/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT - NO SALES - NO ARCHIVES

VIRGINIA WATER, England (AP) -- Rory McIlroy opened the defense of his BMW PGA Championship title on Thursday with a 1-under 71 that left him four strokes behind clubhouse leader Robert Karlsson.

McIlroy says ''I felt like I left a couple of shots out there'' and that ''I did not do anything that good and there is definitely room for improvement over the next few days.