Australia’s Jason Day made a hot start to The Masters, sitting two shots off the lead following his opening round, while Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau’s fortunes went in opposite directions.
Day fired a three-under par round of 69 to sit in the clubhouse alongside Patrick Reed and Kurt Kitayama as the closest rivals to leaders McIlroy and Sam Burns.
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Day charged up the leaderboard with three back nine birdies, including consecutive birdies at 12 and 13.
The former runner-up breezed through the often daunting Amen Corner before producing a miraculous escape act with an eight-iron from the trees to save par on 14.
“I had 153 yards to the pin. Wind was in out of the left. We had about three to four yards of spin with another seven-ish yards of hurt. So we are just trying to hit a big high cut,” Day told reporters at Augusta National.
“Sometimes in those scenarios it’s coming out of first cut, if you contact wrong with it, it can fly straight through and you don’t get the cut. Just comes out like a flyer, so it was important to slice across it.”
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Day lauded his “really good” short game pre-tournament, and it came up clutch on 17 and 18 as he drained crucial par putts to close out his round.
“Definitely feels good when you hole those putts,” he said.
“Obviously shooting three under is always better than shooting two under or one under.
“So I need to go to the range and work on some stuff. Need to make sure I’m staying on top of my speed because I feel like the greens are only going to firm out and get faster.”
Meanwhile, a host of the pre-tournament favourites made significant first round moves.
Defending champion McIlroy’s opening 67 ignited with back-to-back birdies to close out the front nine.
The career grand slam winner then surged again with three straight birdies at 13, 14 and 15 to join Burns in a share of the lead at 5-under.
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“It’s a great start. There’s a long way to go. I’m right in the tournament and it’s a lot better than starting from seven behind going into the second round like I was last year,” McIlroy told Sky Sports.
“Great start, but can’t get ahead of myself. There’s a long way to go, but feeling good with where I’m at.”
World No.1 Scottie Scheffler kick started his push for a third green jacket with an eagle at the par 5 second.
DeChambeau, meanwhile, has left himself in a battle to make the cut.
The LIV Golf superstar ruined his round by taking three shots out of the greenside bunker on 11 on his way to a triple bogey seven – no player has ever won a green jacket after making a triple bogey.
“The bunker was softer than I anticipated,” he told reporters post-round.
DeChambeau eventually signed off on a four-over par 76.
Adam Scott was the next best of the Australian contingent.
The 2013 champion opened with a rollercoaster even par 72.
Scott made a stunning eagle at the par 5 13th to follow up a birdie at the 12th.
The veteran played the front nine in 38, so fought back strongly in the latter half of his round but a bogey at the last stopped him from ending the first round with a red number next to his name.
Cameron Smith opened his tournament with a 74.
The 2022 Open champion bogeyed his final two holes, but stressed to reporters: “I’m definitely not out of the tournament”.
“Yeah, a couple quick fives just like that,” Smith said of 17 and 18. “This place can do it to you.”
He added: “I made a really kind of crappy bogey on 13. I was in a really good spot and made bogey which hurt a little bit.
“But other than that, you know, I got the most out of my round [even though] I didn’t feel that great. I did a good job hanging in there.”
Min Woo Lee endured a first round shocker.
The top ranked Australian shot a six-over par 78, having made just one birdie for the day.
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