Well, Rory McIlroy didn't waste any time in lighting up the FedEx St. Jude Classic on Friday. McIlroy, who will surely erase a streak of three missed cuts in a row, opened par-birdie-eagle in the first three holes of his second round to get within one shot of clubhouse leader J.B. Holmes. You can catch McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Padraig Harrington in our featured group on Shot Tracker or when television coverage begins on Golf Channel at 3 p.m. The big-hitting Holmes, meanwhile, got off to a blistering start in the morning with an outward, 6-under 29. He finished with a 64 and was at 6 under for the tournament. In September 2011, Holmes had brain surgery to relieve pressure after experiencing vertigo-like symptoms.  The surgeon took out a piece of his skull about three-quarters the size of a golf ball to relieve the pressure on the cerebellum. Since his return at the Farmers Insurance Open in late January, Holmes has posted two top-10s and four top-25s in 13 events. First-round co-leaders Jeff Maggert ( On course) and John Merrick (69) were also near the top of the leaderboard. Also in the mix are U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III (68), who was at 4 under, and John Daly (69), who was at 3 under. So who do you think will be leading after Round 2? Can Maggert keep it going? Will McIlroy take it real low?

Ken Duke has played six consecutive weeks on the PGA TOUR. He's made 17 starts in the first 22 weeks of the 2012 season. That's a lot of time spent inside the ropes for any player, but especially one who's 43 years old.

He will finally take a break next week ... and that may be why he has played so well in the first two rounds of this week's FedEx St. Jude Classic. Duke shot his second consecutive 2-under 68 on Friday, which puts him at 4 under for the tournament and firmly in contention heading into the weekend.

"I feel good about taking a week off next week," Duke said. "That's what it's all about. I think that's kind of why I'm pretty free this week."

Despite the rugged playing schedule, Duke has played well all year. He has four top-10 finishes in those 17 starts and entered this week ranked 44th in FedExCup points. He ended last year by winning the Nationwide Tour Championship at Daniel Island but has yet to break through with his first PGA TOUR win.

Maybe that changes this weekend.

"It is great to be up here on the TOUR and be on the leaderboard," Duke said. "I'm just trying to do what I can do and I can't control everyone else."

Jeff Maggert and John Merrick were delighted to get off to a good start as first-round co-leaders of the FedEx St. Jude Classic. Rory McIlroy was happy to get back on track. Maggert and Merrick carded 4-under 66s while McIlroy was two shots back after an opening 68 on Thursday at TPC Southwind. “I felt like that was about the best round of golf I played in awhile,” said McIlroy, who has missed three cuts in his past three events. “It could have been a lot better." McIlroy twice saved par by making putts outside of 8 feet. He also rolled in a 16-1/2 foot birdie putt and another one from just inside 10 feet. After missing the cut at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance last week, McIlroy continued to spend time working on his swing plane. He said that he saw some progress on Thursday. “Definitely. I’m getting the club in a better position,” said McIlroy, who will defend his U.S. Open title next week at The Olympic Club in San Francisco. “From there you have a little bit of freedom. You’re not trying to protect against a bad shot. You’re trying to hit the shot you can see. Yeah. I still feel like it’s improving but it’s getting (better).” Arjun Atwal, Jeff Overton, J.J. Henry and rookie Seung-Yul Noh were one shot back at 67. U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III, Robert Allenby, McIlroy, Padraig Harrington, Chad Campbell, Ken Duke, Y.E. Yang, John Daly, Lee Janzen, J.J. Killeen and Troy Kelly all shot 68s.

Jeff Maggert has missed the cut in nine of last 12 starts entering this week, but reaching the weekend shouldn’t be a problem this time. Maggert opened with a 4-under 66 at the FedEx St. Jude Classic on Thursday that included four birdies and an eagle and gave him the early clubhouse lead before John Merrick joined him at the top. It was Maggert's first round in the 60s in his last 14 rounds on the PGA TOUR. It’s no surprise that Maggert played well at TPC Southwind – his last win on TOUR came in this event in 2006. “I played some good golf today,” said Maggert, who had shoulder surgery a year ago. “I’ve been struggling a little bit but I’ve always felt comfortable on this course." Maggert eagled the par-5 third hole with a 324-yard drive, followed by a second shot that landed 7-1/2 feet from the pin. “That was a putt I was supposed to make,” Maggert said. “I’d been kicking myself if I had missed it.” Click here to replay Maggert’s round

John Merrick gave himself a little pep talk coming into the FedEx St. Jude Classic. Apparently it was pretty good. Merrick, who tied for 11th here last year, shot a 4-under 66 to grab a share of the first-round lead with Jeff Maggert at TPC Southwind. "Kind of was trying to think about that last year, that decent finish coming into this week, and kind of telling myself, you know, I played good here, I can do it again," Merrick said. Merrick used some clutch putting and solid ball-striking to rise to the top. He made birdie putts of 9, 6, 7, 18 and 5 feet. "I hit a couple loose drives, I think on 7 and then on 18," Merrick said. "Other than that I, kind of kept it in play, kept it in the fairways. That's kind of the only way you're going to score out here with the greens being so firm and how windy it is." Merrick's only hiccup came on the 18th, when he hit his tee shot in the hazard. He chipped up to the green from 30 yards away and saved bogey. "Had a loose shot there on 18, but, you know, you're going -- can't hit every shot perfect out there," he said. "So I was really happy with today." The 66 marked Merrick's lowest first round on the PGA TOUR since he carded the same number at last year's St. Jude. Merrick has made seven of 15 cuts this season. His best finish is tied for 33rd at the Farmers Insurance Open. Click here to replay Merrick's round.

Rory McIlroy hit just half of his greens and less than half of his fairways in the first round. Still, the reigning U.S. Open champ – who will defend his title next week – shot one of the better rounds in the morning wave, a 2-under 68. "I felt like that was about the best round of golf I played in awhile," said McIlroy, who has missed three cuts in his past three events. "It could have been a lot better. ... The scoring doesn't look too good. Off to a decent start, definitely. 2-under is a decent start. Definitely so. Lot of good signs out there." Give credit to his putter. McIlroy twice saved par by making putts outside of 8 feet. He also rolled in a 16-1/2 foot birdie putt and another one from just inside 10 feet. No surprise that McIlroy was effective from that distance – he ranks inside the top 20 on TOUR in putting from 5-15 feet and 15-25 feet. McIlroy has also been working on his swing plane. He saw progress on Thursday. "Definitely. I'm getting the club in a better position," he said. "From there you have a little bit of freedom. You're not trying to protect against a bad shot. You're trying to hit the shot you can see. Yeah. I still feel like it's improving but it's getting (better)." So will McIlroy snap a streak of three straight missed cuts and stay around for the weekend? We'll see. What do you think? Click here to replay McIlroy’s round

John Daly is off to another fast start on a Thursday. But will it continue? Daly, playing on a sponsor's exemption, carded a 2-under 68 in the first round and was in the top 10. He had five birdies and a double-bogey 5 on No. 11 when he hit his tee shot into the hazard. So was Daly happy with his round? "Normally I would be," Daly said. "It was a good ball-striking round for me. But I just didn’t make a lot of putts. So it’s kind of frustrating in that way. ... "It’s nice to feel disappointed about shooting 2 under. It really is." In four events this season, Daly has made three cuts. Each time, he's opened with a respectable score in Round 1 -- but it hasn't led to a high finish. At the Transitions Championship, Daly shot a first-round 69. He tied for 51st. At the RBC Heritage, Daly shot a first-round 70. He tied for 52nd. After a Round 1 73 at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans he shot an 80 and missed the cut. He shot a 70 in the first round at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial and tied for 41st. Daly has made 14 of 20 cuts in Memphis. His best finish was a T5 in 2001. We'll see if he can continue his solid play this week. Click here to replay Daly's round.

A month ago at THE PLAYERS Championship, Jeff Overton got a cortisone shot in his collarbone. He missed the cut that week, and followed with two more missed cuts before finishing tied for 38th last week at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. "It was tough for those little few weeks," Overton said. But he’s feeling better now, and it showed on Thursday with a 3-under 67 that puts him near the top of the lead. It’s also his best score in his last 18 rounds on TOUR. "My game is as good as it’s ever been," Overton said. Click here to replay Overton’s round