Scottie Scheffler endured a frustrating finish to his first round at The Open, though his defence of the Claret Jug still got off to a strong start.
Scheffler has won at least one major in three of the last four seasons, last going without one in 2023, and is aiming to add another to his tally by becoming the first man since Padraig Harrington in 2008 to win successive Open titles.
Despite missing the cut at The Scottish Open last week, the world number one headed to Royal Birkdale, the scene of Harrington’s successful defence, as the clear favourite following his outstanding performance to win the championship at Royal Portrush last year.
The Texan quickly set about vindicating that status, carding birdies on four of the first six holes.
Yet a superb long putt for birdie at the sixth was followed by a dropped shot at the par-three seventh, a blemish for which he was unable to atone.
And the round ended on a sour note for Scheffler, as he dropped back to two under with a bogey on the par-five 17th.
Scheffler happy with ‘solid day’
Scheffler looked to have saved par when he chipped to four feet from the rough, only to then miss what should have been a routine putt as he carded a 68.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Scheffler said: “The start was great. Outside of that, I felt I didn’t take advantage of some of my good play. Wish I could have holed a few more putts, but overall it was a solid day. I hit a lot of fairways and a lot of greens.
“Overall, it was definitely a solid day. There is some risks on the golf course. There is some challenges there. You can get yourself in some troublesome spots pretty quickly. I did a good job getting them on the fairway and getting them on the green.”
Sungjae Im and Daniel Brown set the early pace with four-under rounds of 66. Robert MacIntyre, Bryson DeChambeau and former champion Francesco Molinari were among six players to finish on three under.
Hometown hope Tommy Fleetwood carded a 69 at the Southport course, as did Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton.
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