Dustin Johnson claims first-round lead in 144th Open at St Andrews
Last Updated: 17/07/15 7:11pm
Dustin Johnson provided an admirable response to his US Open disappointment as he outshone Jordan Spieth to end the first day of the 144th Open with the outright lead.
First round leaderboard
Johnson three-putted the 72nd green at Chambers Bay to hand a second straight major to Spieth, and the pair renewed their rivalry at St Andrews on Thursday after being drawn together for the opening two rounds.
Many of the early starters took advantage of benign, morning conditions, and it was Johnson who fared best as he made an eagle and five birdies in a flawless seven-under 65 - two better than the Masters and US Open champion.
Johnson got into his stride with birdies at the second and third before he added an eagle at the fifth. Further birdies followed at nine and 10, and he made easy work of the par-five 14th to make a cast-iron four.
He parred in to stay at seven under, giving him a one-shot lead over early pace-setters Robert Streb and Retief Goosen, while Jason Day, Paul Lawrie, Zach Johnson and Danny Willett also returned 66s with Spieth one further behind.
The 21-year-old Texan threatened to tear the Old Course apart when he birdied the first two holes and then reeled off three in a row from the fifth to keep pace with playing-partner Dustin Johnson.
Spieth added a sixth birdie at the short 11th, but a wayward drive at 13 cost him a shot and, after saving par from 10 feet on a scrappy 14th hole, he fell victim to the notorious Road Hole 17th before hitting back with a closing birdie.
Veterans shine
Streb had earlier given an indication of the near-perfect scoring conditions when he scorched to the turn in 31, although he got out of shape on the inward half and had to settle for a 66, while two-time US Open champion Goosen rolled back the years with seven birdies and just one blemish on his card.
Lawrie was another veteran enjoying a profitable opening day, and the 1999 champion was the first man to reach seven under when he birdied the 13th before a stunning 60-yard pitch at the next came within inches of dropping for an unlikely birdie four.
The Scot relinquished a share of the lead at the 17th, which did not yield a single birdie all day and played to an average of over 4.8, while Day ignored the problems of his playing partner Tiger Woods to return a bogey-free 66.
Zach Johnson and Willett were the stand-out performers among the later starters in the worst of the weather, with a stiffening breeze and colder temperatures leading to far higher scores after lunch.
Willett raced out of the blocks with three opening birdies, and he made one of only three eagle-twos at the short, par-four 10th before answering a bogey at 11 with further birdies at 13 and 18.
Louis Oosthuizen, who cruised to Open glory at St Andrews five years ago, put himself in contention for a repeat as he matched Spieth's 67 - as did fellow South African Charl Schwartzel, American Kevin Na and Jordan Niebrugge - whose round was the lowest first-day score by an amateur in the Open at St Andrews.
Engish trio Greg Owen, Luke Donald and David Howell all opened with confident 68s along with Scotland's Marc Warren, while 2013 champion Phil Mickelson struggled in the afternoon and did well to salvage a two-under 70.
But Woods has his work cut out merely to make the weekend after a dreadful start, in which he fatted a wedge into the Swilcan Burn at the first and also chunked a nine-iron approach to the second - both leading to bogeys.
The three-time champion dropped further shots at five, seven and 10, although he lifted his mood with a birdie at 14 and parred in for a 76 - the same score as Tom Watson.
