Former PGA winner Padraig Harrington was the best of the three Irish out in the morning half of the draw and shooting a one over par 71 and likening his effort to putting on his beloved Stackstown course in suburban Dublin.

Padraig Harrington tees off on the first hole during the first round of the 2016 PGA Championship golf tournament at Baltusrol GC – Lower Course. Mandatory Credit: Eric Sucar-USA TODAY Sports

“I didn’t putt very well at all and I need to free myself up a bit of the greens as there is plenty of slope, they’re reasonably quick and they’re a bit like putting at Stackstown,” he said.

Harrington’s round was a mix of three birdies, two bogeys and a fourth hole double bogey where he caught the ball ‘heavy’ that failed to clear the water guarding the green.

“It was a five from nowhere,” he said.

“The 7-iron was the right club but I just caught it a bit heavy and even though it looked like it was going to get up, it was straight down the pin, one of those that on a good day it would be stone dead and I would be saying great shot.”

And Harrington had an interesting take on the course named after 1831 murdered Dutch farmer, Boltus Roll.

“It seemed they had two different people set up the front nine and the back nine,” he said.

“The front-9 pins were the easiest I’ve ever seen in a Major.  Much tighter pins on the back-9.

“But then you’d love to play golf here every day of the week.”