one week. McIlroy shot a bogey-free opening round of 3-under-par 68 at the 2007 Open Championship at Carnoustie, his first major championship entry. He shot +5 overall and was the highest finishing amateur, winning the silver medal. McIlroy was part of the Great Britain & Ireland team at the 2007 Walker Cup, held at the Royal County Down Golf Club. On the first day of the event he was paired with Jonathan Caldwell for morning foursomes, and the match was halved. In the afternoon he faced Billy Horschel in singles, but Horschel won 1 up. On the second day McIlroy and Caldwell lost in morning foursomes by the score of 2 & 1. In the afternoon he faced Horschel in singles again, and this time he won by the score of 1 up. McIlroy's overall record was (1–2–1) in Win–loss–tie format. The United States came out victorious by a score of 12½ to 11½. McIlroy made his first appearance in a European Tour event a few days after turning 16, when he took part in the 2005 British Masters. He made the cut on the European Tour for the first time as a 17-year-old at the 2007 Dubai Desert Classic, where he had to forego prize money of over €7,600 due to his amateur status. Professional career 2007 McIlroy turned professional on 18 September 2007, the day before the Quinn Direct British Masters. He signed with International Sports Management. At the Quinn Direct British Masters, McIlroy shot 290 (+2), which put him in a tie for 42nd place. He finished in 3rd place at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in October. The next week, he secured his card for 2008 by finishing in a tie for 4th place at the Open de Madrid Valle Romano. He became the youngest Affiliate Member in the history of The European Tour to earn a tour card. On the 2007 European Tour season, he earned €277,255 and finished in 95th place on the Order of Merit list. He was the highest ranked associate member. 2008 Before his season started, Tiger Woods invited McIlroy to play in the 2007 Target World Challenge, held in December, and the 2008 AT&T National, held in July. McIlroy declined the invitation, preferring to play the European Open the week of the AT&T National. McIlroy started his 2008 European Tour season at the UBS Hong Kong Open. He did not