Former champion Darren Clarke enjoyed a dream start to his home Open after taking an unexpected early lead on day one of the 148th championship.
The 2011 winner, given the honour of hitting the opening tee shot at 6.35am at Royal Portrush, relived former glories in front of an adoring crowd with three birdies in his opening six holes.
Clarke, who owns a house overlooking the course, holed a 15-foot putt at the first and then a brilliant approach to three feet at the short third moved him to two under, with a third birdie following at another par three, the sixth.
That was better than any of the other early starters could manage, with Clarke's playing partner James Sugrue, the Amateur Championship winner from Ireland, one behind after leaving his eagle attempt at the par-five second short and then holing a 30-footer at the par-three sixth.
With early morning sunshine piercing the cloudy skies, Clarke was welcomed on the first tee to huge cheers.
The 50-year-old, who now plays on the veterans' Champions Tour in the United States, has missed the cut in three of the last four years at the Open but, after sharing a few words with victorious Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn, he got off to a confidence-boosting start in breezy conditions.
And he survived his first real test at the fourth where he had to hole a six-footer for par to avoid dropping his first shot, retaining his lead and ensuring his fairy tale continued.
Great crowds enjoying the first day of competition at #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/Bq3o48sLLv
— Suzanne McGonagle (@SuzMcGonagle) July 18, 2019
An hour into his round the first of the rain arrived to increase the difficulty level at Royal Portrush, hosting its first Open since 1951.
A terrible swing by Clarke at the par-five seventh saw him send his second into heavy rough on the right, meaning he had to declare an unplayable lie which eventually cost him a bogey.
That brought him back into the pack on two under, which included England's Eddie Pepperell and compatriot Andrew Johnston, who eagled the second, and Ireland's Shane Lowry and Sugrue.
However, Frenchman Romain Langasque emerged from the group with a third birdie of the day when an 18ft putt dropped at the seventh and to compound matters Clarke, who had turned in 34, saw his 15-footer for par slide by the hole at the 11th to fall two behind the new leader.
All six Irish players have early tee times.
Rory McIlroy, who set the course record of 61 at Portrush aged 16, has a 10.09am tee time with US Open champion Gary Woodland and England’s Paul Casey.
Portrush native Graeme McDowell is grouped with Henrik Stenson and Xander Schauffele at 9.14am.
Pádraig Harrington is scheduled for a 7.30am tee time with Matt Fitzpatrick and American Andrew Putnam.
Shane Lowry hits off at 7.52am with Phil Mickelson and Branden Grace.
Clarke said he was asked three weeks ago by the R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers to hit the opening tee shot. “I was honoured to be asked,” said Clarke.
"It's Royal Portrush, it's the first time it has been here for 68 years and I gladly accepted," Clarke said. "Sometimes it can also be a good draw teeing off so early."
Asked if he will have tears in his eyes on Thursday morning, Clarke replied: "No. I will just be proud that we have the Open back here in Northern Ireland.
"It's a huge thing to have it back here and it's going to be an amazing tournament."
Others to watch
Three-time champion Tiger Woods, who won his 15th major at the Masters in April, is out at 15:10.
Woods will play with his Ryder Cup team-mate Patrick Reed and England's Matt Wallace.
World number one Brooks Koepka, who won the US PGA Championship in May and finished second at both the Masters and US Open this year, is out at 13:04. His caddie Ricky Elliott is also a Portrush native, which may help overcome a perceived lack of links experience.
