Rory McIlroy unintentionally accomplished something extremely rare on the golf course on Thursday: his 9-iron head broke off during a shot at the BMW PGA Championship.

In the opening round of the BMW PGA Championship, Rory McIlroy was playing his second shot on the par-5 12th hole and lost the clubhead on his 9-iron. Despite the equipment malfunction, the Northern Irishman managed to land his ball within seven feet of the pin.

Rory McIlroy, Robert MacIntyre and Shane Lowry all card opening-round 67s at Wentworth to sit two strokes behind leader Matthew Baldwin on seven under; defending champion Ryan Fox starts with a one-under 71;