HE IS the reigning Masters champion for a reason – Jordan Spieth was impeccable on a day of tough conditions, shooting a flawless 6-under par 66  at Augusta National to lead The Masters by two shots after round one.
Recently de-throned by Jason Day as the world No.1 golfer, Spieth fired off six birdies and no bogeys as strong winds kept the rest of the field at bay, with Irishman Shane Lowry and Kiwi Danny Lee finishing at 4-under par.
But it was Day who struggled the most – although only on three holes. The 28-year-old got off to a sizzling start, carding an eagle at the par-5 second before picking up four birdies and a bogey to get to 5-under. However, he had a disastrous stretch of three holes: a bogey at the par-5 15th, triple-bogey at the par-3 16th and another bogey at the par-4 17th. The US PGA Champion signed for an even-par 72, but was optimistic after his round.
“I played great up until 15 green; it was a tough layup … it (stretch of bad holes) can happen to anyone, ” Day said. “I’m not too disappointed; I played well for the most part in tough conditions. I just have to keep pushing forward. I’m only six back right now (and) if I can play the way I did early in my round (today), I can catch up but I have to (buckle) down and try push forward.”
Adam Scott, like countryman Day, came into The Masters with serious hype after a purple patch of great form on the US PGA Tour, including back-to-back wins. But the 2013 Masters champion slumped to a poor round of 76.
“I found it hard to two-putt from some of these starts; when I was not on a perfect number today I was not on my perfect iron play,” Scott said post round. “If i can get off to a quick front nine tomorrow, I’ll be back in it. You need a few things to go your way and some things you can’t control.”
The other Australians at Augusta are all over par, with Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman T43 at 2-over (74) and Steven Bowditch handing in a regrettable 79 to finish T77.
Rounding out the top 10 after the first round was a five-way tie for fourth at 3-under featuring Paul Casey, Justin Rose, Ian Poulter, Soren Kjeldsen and Sergio Garcia. They were followed by a four-way tie for ninth at 2-under with Billy Horschel, Scott Piercy, Danny Willett and Rory McIlroy.
