The Open 2024: first round updates – live | The Open

Brian Harman is channelling his Hoylake magic again. After a bogey to start, the left-hander had birdied 2 and 4 and he’s up to tied fifth. Other notable names on that number are Scandies Ludvig Aberg (4) and Viktor Hovland (4). Maybe Harman could be leading the Claret Jug race again fairly soon given that two-shot leader Justin Thomas has driven into a gorse bush at 11.

Bryson DeChambeau is finding Royal Troon’s greens a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. Another short one missed and the US Open champ is +3 after 4. Winston Churchill, who came out with that above quote to describe Russia, also had one about golf believe it not. It suggests he had his troubles. “Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an ever smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose.”

Correction, Matt Wallace made triple not double at 9. That means both he and Song chucked away three shots on a single hole after hitting -4 at one point. Both now reside at -1. Justin Thomas will hope this day one curse (bit strong for just two examples to be honest) won’t happen to him.

A scroll down the official yellow Open leaderboard shows not ideal starts for three players backed to go well this week: John Rahm, Tommy Fleetwood and Tom Kim. All featured heavily at Hoylake last year – Rahm and Kim finishing well to share second place and Fleetwood a big factor before falling to 10th – but they’re all at +1 here. Update – that’s a live blog for you – Kim has birdied 4 to return to even par. Rahm and Fleetwood have also played four holes.

Last week’s Scottish Open hero Robert MacIntyre certainly enjoyed his post-Renaissance Club celebrations, cancelling his Open press conference from Monday to Wednesday to presumably get a little steadier on his feet. He’s already produced one big Open roar here with a birdie at 3 and is -1 after 4 although he’s leaked his tee-shot left at 5. Superb approach shots from McIlroy and Hatton to 3 dance around the hole. The former should make birdie and the latter a par despite his penalty for finding the ditch.

Tyrrell Hatton was fifth at Royal Troon in 2016 – his best Open finish – and he’s been in good nick (apparently) on the LIV Tour with a win and a third in his last two 54-hole events. A par-par start here was decent enough but his tee-shot at 3 has bounded on and dropped into a ditch running across the fairway. F-bomb stuff right there. On a wider point, it shows that the wind may have switched to behind (the prevailing wind over Troon’s opening stretch along the coastline). That means the birdie-count on this opening third of the course should increase but will make the closing nine harder.

Justin Rose tees off at 11, the cherry picker camera shot showing the railway line running adjacent to the fairway which Rose finds after a nice drive. The Englishman’s fourth place as a baggy-trousered 17-year old at Royal Birkdale in 1997 is part of Open folklore but far less known is that he got to Open Final Qualifying as a 14-year-old! Good grief! That swing at the top plays out. Wallace makes double bogey at 9, Thomas holes for birdie at 10 and the American leads the 152nd Open by two shots.

Rory’s approach to 2 from 159 yards is pin high but about 25 feet left of the flag. And hot news from the 9th where leader Matt Wallace has lost his ball! Double bogey looking likely there. And as Wallace stumbles, a hole ahead at the 10th, Thomas seizes the moment with an excellent approach and he’ll have a very good look at birdie. If he can sink that, JT will be two clear. DeChambeau’s sticky start continues as he suffers a par-putt lip out for the second time in three holes to drop to +2.

Former Royal Troon Open winners Justin Leonard (1997) and Todd Hamilton (2004) are finding it tough today. They’re at +8 and +7 respectively with three holes to play. If you fancy a bit of extra nostalgia, here’s Steven Pye with a look back to the 1989 Open at Troon won by Mark Calcavecchia.

Matt Wallace comes close to a hole-in-one at The Postage Stamp. No matter, a tap-in birdie at that 8th hole puts the Englishman out in front at -4. He’s one clear of Justin Thomas, who was the first-round leader at last week’s Scottish Open thanks to a 62 before falling away to finish 62nd. He probably didn’t appreciate the symmetry. Less good news for Rory, whose chip at the 1st comes up short and he can’t hole the par putt from 8 feet. Even worse news for Max Homa who has been out of sorts for a while and makes double bogey.

-4: Wallace (8)
-3: Thomas (8)
-2: N Hojgaard (10), Scott (10), Molinari (9), Rose (9)

Paul McGinley makes the point that as well as the wind, players are having to adjust to the heavy air. All that salt in it is leading to balls just not flying very far. Rory finds that out with an approach to 1 that lands short of the green but he just avoids the bunker. And there’s a first “sorry for any strong language you may have heard there” of the day for Tyrrell Hatton as the fiery Englishman leaks his second shot right although it finds the putting surface. “Awful golf shot,” he mutters.

Royal Troon has got the better of Song on the 11th and the Korean, who hit the giddy heights of -4 after 8, has spiralled back into the pack after a triple bogey 7. Ouch. That’s four shots gone in the last three holes. There are struggles elsewhere too. Tommy Fleetwood has bogeyed the 2nd to fall to +1 and Harman will need to hole a long par putt at 1 after finding the front bunker with his approach. He can’t. Harman +1.

Bryson DeChambeau produced an otherworldly up and down to win the US Open and break Rory McIlroy’s heart at Pinehurst last month. Here at Troon, he said in the build-up that links golf is a “challenge” and that’s shown in his Open record: 60-8-33-MC-51-MC. He’s certainly found the first green a challenge, taking three putts to start out with a bogey.

As he stomps off to the 2nd tee, here comes McIlroy onto the 1st – this has been nicely scripted hasn’t it – and the Northern Irishman, in his dark raingear, finds the fairway with a low drawn iron.

Thanks Scott. First job is to tell you that defending champion Brian Harman has just teed off and found the first fairway. He’s in an attractive three-ball alongside Norway’s Viktor Hovland and popular American Sahith Theegala. Harman obviously had his amazing win at Hoylake last year but it goes a little underreported that he was sixth the year before at St Andrews. On current form (21st Scottish Open, 9th Travelers), he must have a good chance of cracking the top 10 for a third straight year.

… and with that, I’ll hand you over to David Tindall. See you later!

Bother for the leader Younghan Song at 11. He sends his tee shot into thick stuff down the right, then pulls his next one across the fairway into proper filth. He might not find that, so wisely plays a provisional. He’ll almost certainly be dropping out of the lead, his place almost certainly to be taken by Justin Thomas, who screws his tee shot at the Postage Stamp to seven inches. When JT taps in, he’ll be -3.

The rain is now coming down in stair rods. Proper Open weather. There’s a dark cloud above Justin Rose’s head as well, as a numpty in the gallery puts him off mid-swing at the Postage Stamp. He sends his tee shot into the deep bunker to the right of the green … but while the weather keeps on, Rose’s mood improves as he manages to splash out to five feet and sink the putt. He remains at -2.

The local hero Bob MacIntyre pars his opening hole. He comes up short with his approach, only just finding the front of the green, but lags up from the best part of 60 feet to kick-in distance. Meanwhile a birdie for Justin Thomas, who steers in a right-to-left slider from 15 feet; he returns to -2.

Justin Rose lands his second at 7 pin high from 160 yards. He rolls in the straight eight-foot birdie putt and rises to -2. The rain’s back and the wind’s up. Scotland, the Open, right here.

Bounce-back birdie for Nicolai Hojgaard at the Postage Stamp. He finds the middle of the tiny green and rolls in a 16-footer to return to -2. His playing partner Adam Scott matches him shot for shot, and the 44-year-old Aussie joins him at -2. The rain abates.

Alex Noren flies the green at 11 but manages to get up and down from the swale over the back to save his par. But it’s a bogey for Nicolai Hojgaard at 7, punishment for a misread tiddler. Bogey for Justin Thomas at 5. And Younghan Song isn’t able to take advantage of his fortunate signpost-tinged lucky break on 9. He doesn’t take a shy for the green with his second, laying up and trusting his short game … but he’s unable to get close with his chip and suddenly the top of the leaderboard has concertinaed a tad.

-3: Song (9), Wallace (5)
-2: Noren (11), Molinari (6)
-1: C Scott -a- (11), N Hojgaard (7), Scott (7), Rose (6), Thomas (5), Im (5), Rai (3)

The weather is changeable all right. It’s raining again. On 6, Justin Rose nearly drains a long left-to-right slider for birdie. Just the par, but he’s given Francesco Molinari a read, and from 25 feet the 2018 champion coaxes in his putt to join the small group at -2.

A huge break for the leader Younghan Song on 9. He flays a wild tee shot miles left, his ball heading for waist-high jungle-style rough. But it clanks off a yellow Open signpost and back into play. Still not ideal, on scruffy ground to the side of a spectator walkway, but the alternative didn’t bear thinking about. It’s been the 33-year-old South Korean’s morning all right.

Eagle for Matt Wallace on 4! Wedging in from the semi-rough, 85 yards out, his ball takes a skip and a hop on the green, landing a few inches behind the cup and spinning back in. A tie for third at the 2019 apart, the 34-year-old Englishman doesn’t have much of a record in the majors. Early doors, of course, but with Song tidying up for his birdie on the Postage Stamp, look at this now …

-4: Song (8)
-3: Wallace (4)
-2: Noren (10), N Hojgaard (6), Thomas (4)

Younghan Song is on a roll. He earned his spot at the Open with a second-place finish at the Korea Open, and knocks his second at 7 to ten feet. He steers in the left-to-right swinger for his third birdie of the morning to take sole possession of the lead … then sends his tee shot at the famous par-three 8th pin high to four feet. Big chance for another birdie coming up.

-3: Song (7)
-2: Noren (9), N Hojgaared (5), Thomas (4)

Alex Noren sinks a 40-footer on 9 to hit the turn in 34 strokes. He joins Younghan Song and Nicolai Hojgaard at -2 … as does Justin Thomas with birdie at 5. Meanwhile the extremely promising Northern Irish youngster Tom McKibbin birdies the Postage Stamp to move into the red. It is, to borrow a phrase from popular comedian Danny Boon, all happening.

-2: Noren (9), Song (6), N Hojgaard (5), Thomas (4)
-1: McKibbin (9), C Scott -a- (9), Svensson (7), A Scott (5), Molinari (4), Rose (4), Im (4), Wallace (3), De la Fuente (1), Rai (1)

News of another amateur, Santiago de la Fuente: the 22-year-old Mexican drains a 30-footer on 1 that would still be going had it not hit the cup. A confident stroke and no mistake. He’s joined at -1 by his playing partner Aaron Rai, who only made it into the field with a high finish at last week’s Scottish Open. The 29-year-old from Wolverhampton could be one to watch this week: his tie for fourth last week follows this run on the PGA Tour: T14, T19, T2, T7. He’s in the groove right now and a third career victory is beginning to feel overdue.

Nicolai Hojgaard birdies the par-five 4th to join Younghan Song at -2. Meanwhile the Postage Stamp offers up its first birdie of the week, the 20-year-old Scottish amateur Calum Scott licking it on his Open debut. Scott moves alongside his namesake Adam at -1.

A flurry of birdies shakes things up at the top. Alex Noren at 7. His compatriot Jesper Svensson at 6. Matt Wallace raking a long one across 2. Sungjae Im with a well-worked-out chip-in at 3 that makes use of the right-to-left camber of the green. The rain has stopped and moods around Troon are lifting.

-2: Song (5)
-1: Noren (7), Svensson (6), N Hojgaard (3), Scott (3), Molinari (3), Rose (3), Thomas (3), Im (3), Wallace (2)

Justin Rose makes birdie at the third time of asking. This time his putt drops, at 3. The birdie’s reward for a glorious approach from 125 yards to four feet. That hole-out on 18 at Birkdale seems an awfully long time ago, doesn’t it? Well, that’s because it is. 1998! The reigning champ that year was Justin Leonard … who has just made three bogeys and a double in his last four holes. He’s propping up the entire field right now at +6.

Alex Noren carelessly drives into a fairway bunker at 6, a mistake that leads to bogey. He drops back to level par. His red-hued spot on the leader board is taken up by Justin Thomas, the two-time PGA champion, currently out of sorts, chipping in from the side of 2.

-2: Song (4)
-1: N Hojgaard (3), Scott (3), Molinari (3), Thomas (2)

“A 9.36am start for Bob after four nights on the lash?” splutters Simon McMahon. “Did somebody not have a word with the organising committee? Please tell me he’s been spotted on the driving range, can in hand, and Lloyd Mangrum style tab between his lips.” He’s currently on the putting green. No tinnies. No smokes. Back to work, and grafting hard. Andy Bull has the latest.

… but while we’re on the subject of the heroic Lloyd Mangrum, it’d be rude not to spark this one up again.

… and now Rose nearly drains a 30-footer on 2. A couple of inches here and there, and he’d have opened his bid with back-to-back birdies. But he has to settle for a pair of pars. Of the 24 early starters, only five are in red figures.

-2: Song (4)
-1: Noren (5), N Hojgaard (2), Scott (2), Molinari (2)

Nicolai Hojgaard chips in from the side of 2. The 23-year old Dane joins the group at -1. Meanwhile a great opportunity for an opening birdie for Justin Rose, but the 2013 US Open champion doesn’t hit his fairly straight eight-footer on 1, the ball dying off to the right on its last turn. Par.

Back-to-back birdies for Younghan Song. The latest at 3, and he hits the front on his own. Alex Noren stays on his tail with birdie at the first par-five, the 4th. The 2018 champ Francesco Molinari opens with birdie. But it’s a lip-out from five feet at 3 for Ryosuke Kinoshita, who slips off the early pace.

-2: Song (3)
-1: Noren (4), Scott (1), Molinari (1)

A horror start for Jasper Stubbs. The 22-year-old Australian amateur won the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship last year in something of an upset, ranked as he was 476th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. The victory earned him spots at this year’s Masters and here at Troon. Having missed the cut at Augusta, he now carves his opening tee shot out of bounds down the right. Par with his second ball, but that’s a double to start. It begins to rain, in tune with the young man’s mood.

Adam Scott came so close to lifting the Claret Jug in 2012. It wasn’t to be, and those closing four bogeys at Lytham will have left a scar. He had the Scottish Open snatched from under his nose last week by Bob MacIntyre, too. But there’s little that vexes the genial Aussie too much, and here he his holing out from one of the deep bunkers guarding 1. An opening birdie, and while there are 71 holes still to play, we’re allowed to dream. It’s free.

-1: Song (2), Kinoshita (2), Scott (1)

Kinoshita threatens to hand back his birdie at 2. A timid tee shot leaves him 200 yards out, and he carves his second into thick rough to the right of the green. But he bumps a chip to a couple of feet and scrambles his par. He’s going round with Younghan Song, the 33-year-old from South Korea making his second start at the Open after a tie for 62nd at Birkdale in 2017. Song sends his second from similar distance to five feet, and tidies up for his birdie.

-1: Song (2), Kinoshita (2)
E: Noren (3), McKibbin (3), Svensson (2), Hillier (2), Lee (1), Ancer (1)

Ryosuke Kinoshita has the honour of carding the first birdie of the 2024 Open. The 33-year-old from Japan rakes in a long putt across 1 to hit the top of the standings. Whatever happens now, he’ll always be able to say he once led the Open. Meanwhile up on 3, Tom McKibbin makes the second, steering in a right-to-left slider from 15 feet to return to level par.

-1: Kinoshita (1)
E: Noren (3), McKibben (3), Svensson (1), Norrman (1), Hendry (1), Song (1), Hillier (1)
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+4: Hamilton (3)

The bunkers claim their first victim of the week. Well that didn’t take long. Todd Hamilton sends his second at 3 into a deep trap. His first attempt to escape rockets off the hosel and slams into the face, and he’s forced to turn sideways and bash out in a huff. That leads to a triple bogey. Hamilton won’t be the last. Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson will be wondering why this fate didn’t befall him 20 years ago.

Michael Hendry sends his opening shot down the track. The 36-year-old from New Zealand qualified for Hoylake last year, but was prevented from teeing it up after a leukemia diagnosis. Thankfully he’s back to health and competing this week, having been granted a medical exemption by the R&A. Par to start. He’s going round with Jesper Svensson, who nearly begins his Open debut in perfect fashion, sending his second at 1 from 131 yards to five feet … but he can’t make the putt. We’re still looking for our first birdie of the week.

The first dropped shots of the week. Todd Hamilton and Jack McDonald aren’t able to get up and down at 2. Justin Leonard splashes out to six feet, though, and remains at level par. Back on 1, Tom McKibbin nearly makes the first birdie of the championship, but his putt shaves the hole and on we go.

Opening pars for Justin Leonard, Todd Hamilton and Jack McDonald. But the two erstwhile champions find pot bunkers on 2, while McDonald flies the green. It’s going to be a long day; chances are we’ll love it more than quite a few members of the field. Still, for what it’s worth – and that is next to the square root of absolutely nothing at all – here’s the first leaderboard of the week.

E: Leonard (1), Hamilton (1), McDonald (1)

The weather forecast. It’s Scotland, it’s the Open, it’s changeable. There are outbreaks of rain and drizzle expected throughout the day, and there’s a fresh breeze. The wind’s against on the front nine, but it should help coming home along the more testing back nine, so there’s a good chance of a score in the mid-60s for anyone who keeps it straight. Avoid those pot bunkers, now!

Here we go, then … and the 1997 champion Justin Leonard cracks the opening tee shot of this year’s Open down the middle. He could sell that for cash money to the leaders on Sunday afternoon. The 2004 winner Todd Hamilton follows him down there. And finally, making it three fine strokes, 31-year-old Jack McDonald of nearby Kilmarnock, making his Open debut. The nerves will have been jangling, so everyone strides off wearing a relieved smile.

Preamble