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Former champions Rory McIlroy and Bernd Wiesberger were part of a five-way tie for the lead on a packed leaderboard after day one of the Genesis Scottish Open.
On a day of glorious sunshine and calm wind at The Renaissance Club, the pair – who have six Rolex Series titles between them – carded rounds of 65 to get to five under and join South Korea’s Tom Kim and American Patrick Cantlay at the summit.
They were all briefly passed by Rasmus Højgaard as the twilight began to set in on the East Lothian coast, but the Dane could not hold on, and he too finished the day at five under.
There was then a group of seven players, one shot off the lead, made up of five-time Major winner Brooks Koepka, fellow Americans Kurt Kitayama, Andrew Novak and Michael Thorbjornsen, Australian Min Woo Lee and rising DP World Tour stars Angel Ayora and Oliver Lindell.
McIlroy revealed this week that he was learning to love The Renaissance Club, and his 13 consecutive rounds in the 60s are testament to that.
Starting on the tenth, he sandwiched three birdies with bogeys on the tenth and 18th before an eagle on the first from 18 feet truly sparked his round into life.
He made it four under on the three par fives at the seventh before he holed from off the green on the next to join the leading trio of Kim, Cantlay and Wiesberger.
“I thought for the most part, I played well,” he said. “I felt like I drove the ball particularly well, and I started to see that at Shinnecock as well a couple of weeks ago.
“A continuation of putting the ball in play and then once I do that, I feel like I can attack courses and I can set up scoring opportunities. I did that today.
“Overall, good to get my first round of competitive golf on a links golf course, and it’s obviously a great start to the tournament.”
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Wiesberger was as low as 380th in the world earlier in the year, but he is beginning to show signs of the form that saw him win this event and finish third on the Race to Dubai in 2019.
The Volvo China Open champion also started with a bogey on the tenth but then went on an incredible run, birdieing five of his next seven holes to turn in 65.
Further gains on the first and second made it seven in ten, but a bogey on the eighth slipped him back into a tie.
“I’m in a really good place,” said the man who finished third in Munich last week. “I had a couple of rough years and worked my way through it.
“Right now, golf feels really nice and easy, and now I’ll take as many rounds that feel like this as I can.
“I feel like I’m playing good and got another win under my belt. Last week I finished high in Munich. Nice and comfortable. Hopefully it doesn’t go by too quickly, but golf is fun right now.”
Højgaard has not played any competitive golf since the end of May, and while his play off the tee at times looked rusty, his scrambling from the increased rough was sensational.
He sandwiched a bogey on the second with birdies on the first and fourth before an eagle on the par-five seventh helped him turn in 32.
He followed a birdie on the 11th with two more on the 13th and 14th despite ragged tee shots, but he could not rescue himself on the 16th and surrendered a double before an excellent tee shot helped him make a gain on the par-three 17th.
“The score certainly was good today from where I was on the course,” he said. “I think I saw most of the course today. Yeah, I’m happy to sign for minus one.
“There are some really good things going on. I would just like to hit some more fairways. Head to the range, hit a few drivers and see if I can narrow it in a little bit.”
Kim announced himself on the world stage at this event when he finished third in 2022 and has played every year since, with a worst result of tied-17th.
And he once again showed his affinity for the Renaissance, carding six birdies, including four in his last seven holes and a single bogey.
Ryder Cup star Cantlay finished fourth at this event in 2022, and he went round bogey-free with gains on the 11th, 13th, 16th, 18th and first.
Finn Lindell has yet to miss a cut this season, and the HotelPlanner Tour graduate was making the most of his chance after qualifying for this week via the European Swing Rankings.
There were then 14 players two shots off the lead, including local hero and 2024 champion Robert MacIntyre, fellow Scot Calum Hill, Major Champion Danny Willett and Ryder Cup stars Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick.
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