(Troon) Daniel Brown will not soon forget his first round in a prestigious tournament.
He birdied two of his last three holes at the British Open on Thursday to post a 65 that put him in the lead by one shot at Royal Troon.
A European Tour winner, Brown arrived at Royal Troon having failed to qualify for seven consecutive tournaments since March, before posting better scores in two successive events.
He took six shots off par. That gives him a one-shot lead over Shane Lowry, who avoided bogey.
Having scored his best score in 46 majors, Lowry knew what to expect with the wind, which seemed to throw almost everyone off balance.
He played on this field two weeks ago, a wise decision.
Lowry did very well on the greens, enjoying warm applause. He wanted to remind himself that it is only one day.
PHOTO ANDY BUCHANAN, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Shane Lowry
Luckily I came here two weeks ago and played with this wind on the second day. I saw the course with every type of wind possible. I guess it was a good thing to do.
Shane Lowry
The tournament champion at Royal Portrush five years ago, Lowry hit his stride midway through the round, opening with a 10-foot birdie putt on the seventh hole. He also sank putts of 25 and 20 feet.
Justin Thomas shot 68, one shot behind seven rivals.
The group at 69 includes PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele and Canadian Mackenzie Hughes.
Masters champion Scottie Scheffler battled rain, struggling to shoot a 70.
PHOTO PETER MORRISON, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Scottie Scheffler
“I don’t know if ‘confusing’ is the right word. It’s just a serious challenge, especially when it’s rain,” Scheffler said. “When you throw a wet ball into the wind, it’s amazing how little it travels.”
“I think it was the no 2, I had 165 yards to go. I made great contact with a 5 iron, which usually gets me around 205 yards. The ball stopped at 155 at the most.
The day was marked by strong winds.
U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau struggled with a 42 on the back nine for a 76 total.
Rory McIlroy shot a 78, including two double bogeys.
Every major tournament now seems difficult for Tiger Woods. At 48, his 78 was his worst first round at a major since an 80 at the 2015 U.S. Open.
PHOTO GLYN KIRK, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Tiger Woods and his caddy Lance Bennett arrive on the 18th greene hole.
Justin Leonard, winner at Royal Troon in 1997, returned for the first time since 2016.
But he shot 80, like 11 other golfers with that score or worse.
That includes John Daly (82), who needed eight shots on the final hole.
Corey Conners (71), Nick Taylor (75) and Adam Hadwin (75) also represent the maple leaf.