Martin Laird sent the Scottish flag to the top of the board with four brilliant late opening round birdies in succession in a gutsy two-under par 70 on day one of the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island.
Laird, 38, grabbed seven birdies in total, including four on the trot from the 13th hole, before a pair of closing bogeys in increasingly windy conditions alongside the Atlantic Ocean in South Carolina.
The effort, and in Laird’s first PGA Championship in four years, handed the now Denver-based Scot a then share of third place as the afternoon half of the field took to the course
Scotland’s Martin Laird caps his round of 70 with four birdies in succession
He said: “I played really nicely today and made some nice mid-range putts from around 15 to 20-feet which you have to do on a lot of these holes.
“I then got on a real heated stretch on the back nine with birdies on 13, 14, 15 and 16 which was not expected as you’re just trying to make pars on those holes.
“Those holes, and into the wind which they were, are real bonuses when you make birdies, so I was very happy with my round even though I did bogey the last two holes.
“It’s not often you finish bogey, bogey and still feel really good but I definitely do”.
Laird hit nine of 14 fairways but recorded just 23 putts and with just 25 putts in the conditions, and with 10 of those one-putts.
After bogeys on the fourth and fifth holes, Laird ignited his charge with three birdies in four holes starting at the seventh where he holed a six-footer.
He then drained a 14-footer for birdie at the par-3 ninth hole before getting moving to under par for a first time in sending an 18-footer to the bottom of the cup at the par- 3 10th.
Laird dropped a shot on 12 before igniting his charge to the front by holing out from four-feet at the par-4 14th.
By now Laird was seeing the hole as large as bucket sinking putts of 20-feet at the par-3 15th, 12-feet at the par-4 15th and moving into the lead on his lonesome in finding the cup with a 19-footer at the par-5 16th.
He then ended with two bogeys.
Laird is among a select group teeing-up this week who contested the 2012 PGA Championship while he’s a veteran of 20 other Majors but admits today’s opening round to be among the toughest he’s experienced.
“Today’s round is definitely up there among the toughest rounds rounds I’ve had in the majors,” he said.
“I played really nice. I think I made seven birdies. Any time you make seven birdies around here, you’re playing good. I kind of went out with the mindset this week, even though it’s hard, don’t give the course too much respect. You still have to take on shots when you have the chance.
“I felt like I did a good job of that. I felt like I didn’t bail out. When I had a spot where I could go at the flag, I was making sure I kept doing it and hit a lot of really nice shots and managed to make some birdies.
“You’re going to hit bogeys on this golf course. It’s just too hard not to go in and make a handful of bogeys. It’s nice when you can throw in a bunch of birdies too.”
