Rory Mcllroy led the way on the opening day of the British Open Championship with a six under par 66 and was closely followed by Italian Matteo Manassero, world number one Adam Scott and three-time champion Tiger Woods.
Friday is a big day for Mcllroy, who has stumbled in previous tournaments on the second day, after making blistering starts on Day 1. The Irishman is just one stroke clear of Manassero and is well aware that he cannot afford to have another complacent Day 2.
Mcllroy is concerned about his run in recent tournaments, including last week's Scottish Open, BMW PGA and Memorial Open to name a few, but insisted he is not going to repeat those disastrous outings and will stick to his game plan.
"I had a bad Friday afternoon at Augusta and just made the cut," Mcllroy said. "Then I started horrifically at Quail Hollow and did the same at Saw grass. That's like three tournaments in a row so that's when I started to be conscious of it.
"I was three over par on Friday at (the BMW PGA) Wentworth but managed to get it back but the Memorial (where he shot 63, 78) was obviously the biggest one.
"However, there's nothing really to it. It might just be about higher expectations going out on Friday after a low round on Thursday so I'm going to try to put those expectations aside and take one hole at a time.
"I expect to stick to my game plan and hit good shots," he concluded. "I know that if I execute my game plan, the low numbers are there for me to shoot."
There were question marks over the form of former champion Woods ahead of the tournament, but the 14-time major winner silenced his critics, for now, by overcoming from a nervous start and shooting three-under par 69 to remain just three shots behind the Irishman.
Woods had undergone back surgery in March, due to which he missed two major tournaments, but the 38-year-old showed no ill effects during his performance on the opening day.
"I knew I could do it," Woods said. "That's why I was telling you guys it was so important for me to play at Congressional. The fact that I was able to recover every day, and the fact that I was stronger, more explosive the more days I played.
"I'm only going to get better from that point. And I'm getting stronger, I'm getting faster, I'm getting more explosive. The ball is starting to travel again. And those are all positive things."
Anirban Lahiri played a disappointing opening round and finished three over 75 at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club. Lahiri, after shooting three pars, dropped a bogey and afterwards double-bogeyed in the seventh hole.
"I have to play my best golf," Lahiri said. "I know that. I missed a lot of shots to the right and didn't find enough fairways. The frustration got the better of me coming in and I've got to be careful with that.
"I've got to come out tomorrow with more confidence and more positivity. It was quite disappointing as the conditions were good. I just hit a few destructive shots and didn't find enough fairways. Not what I was looking for obviously."
Australian Scott remains very much in the reckoning for the Claret Jug as he is just two strokes behind Mcllroy. "This has been a big focus for everyone in my crew this year," he said.
Where to Watch Live
The second round action will start at 1:30 pm IST (4:00 am ET, 8:00 am GMT and 9:00 am BST) with live coverage on Star Sports HD2 in India and catch the live updates HERE or HERE. The Tournament will be available live on BBC in the United Kingdom with online streaming option HERE and on BBC Red Button, catch the live updates HERE or HERE or listen to the action HERE.
ESPN will telecast the tournament live in the United States and in Pan Latin America with a live streaming option HERE. Watch the tournament in South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa on SuperSport with online streaming option HERE.
