Former US Open champ Justin Rose will take an impressive three shot lead into the second round of the 89th hosting of the Masters.
Rose, contesting his 20th Masters posted a seven-under 65 that including a hat-trick of opening birdies, along with also three birdies in succession mid-round and with the only hiccup being a closing hole bogey to lead the field by three shots.
The 44-year-old Englishman, who has been runner-up at Augusta National in 2015 and 2017, is clear of a trio of players in second place – Ludwig Aberg, Canadian Correy Connors and defending champ Scottie Scheffler.
Rose’s effort also matches his lowest score in 71 rounds at Augusta National.
Rose Blooms, Scottie Shines & A McIlroy Meltdown on day one 89th hosting @TheMasters
“Delighted to get off to such a great start, & that start definitely, it happened out of the gates”, said @JustinRose99
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“Yeah, obviously delighted to get off to such a great start, and that start definitely, it happened out of the gates”, said Rose.
“For the first few holes everything was going exactly where I was looking, and certainly the first hole, which is definitely one of the trickier holes on the golf course, to knock in a nice 25-footer down the hill right-to-left, exactly what you need to settle yourself into the Masters, and then 2 and 3 are birdie opportunities.
“So to be 3-under through 3 kind of really got me on the front foot and felt like I was playing great golf. When I did find myself into in a little bit of trouble, especially early, No. 5, holed a great putt for par. And middle of the back nine I felt like there were a couple moments where the momentum could have changed. But really good up-and-downs on 14 and 15 to keep the round really hot.
“Obviously the only blemish on 18, but there’s no point dwelling on that.
“It was a really good day’s golf on a golf course that was a stern test. I think if you look at the overall leaderboard, not many low scores out there. You had to hit a lot of quality shots, and delighted the way I played.”
Double Masters winning Scheffler had enjoyed the on-course through 10 holes of his round in an eventual bogey-free round as he seeks to win a third Augusta National members green jacket in four years.
However the big disappointment was World No. 2 Rory McIlroy having moved to four-under through 14 holes only to finish in a golfing ambulance, doubling both the 15th and 17th holes to drop back into a share of 27th place at level par.
It’s no surprise McIlroy avoided any formal comment post his effort as he made his way straight to the practice range.
Twenty-five strokes cover the field post the opening round of the year’s opening major with American Nick Dunlap struggling to post an 18-over-par score of 90.
