Bjorn roars but Rory struggles
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Shanghai Daily, July 15, 2011
Thomas Bjorn is trying to create some new memories at Royal St. George's, and erase the bad ones from 2003.
Bjorn opened with a 5-under 65 to claim the lead in the British Open, the major title he was denied the last time it came to this course on the English seaside.
Not that he's dwelling on what happened eight years ago.
"I'm 40 years old," the Dane said, "and there might just be a little bit more in me."
Bjorn ripped off three straight birdies coming down the stretch. Even with a stumble at the final hole, he was in the clubhouse with a one-stroke lead over Miguel Angel Jimenez and six strokes ahead of US Open champion Rory McIlroy, who got off to a sluggish start.
While McIlroy was the clear favorite, Bjorn didn't even get into the tournament until Monday as an alternate, giving him a chance to make up for his collapse at the '03 Open.
That's when he squandered a two-stroke lead over the final three holes, largely by needing three swings to escape a bunker on the par-3 16th. Ben Curtis went on to claim the claret jug in one of golf's greatest shockers.
"I probably didn't dwell on it as much as some people thought," Bjorn said. "I think the only really hard time I had with it was when I came back to Troon the year after. I felt that was difficult because it just became so fresh in the mind: the Open championship."
Good fortune
Bjorn got some good fortune at the 16th this time. He thought his 9-iron was headed for the bunker, but the ball took a fortunate bounce and rolled down next toward the cup. He made the putt for his third birdie in a row.
"We all know what it's like," Bjorn said. "A bounce here or there, and then it goes either wrong or right. Today, it went my way."
Through it all, there was no thought of trying to make up for the last Open at Royal St. George's.
"A lot of people make a lot of things about that, but the only way I can play golf is to concentrate on the shot in front of me," he said. "It never entered my mind."
At least, it appears, he won't have to worry about Curtis. The American champion will have trouble just making the cut after shooting 77.
The clear favorite was McIlroy, coming off his dominating win at Congressional. But the 22-year-old from Northern Ireland put himself in an early hole by making bogeys on two of his first three holes.
McIlroy had trouble hitting it straight off the tee and looked shaky with the putter, hardly resembling the player who blew away the field by eight strokes for his first major title last month, setting a US Open scoring record at 16 under.
Of course, there's still plenty of time for a comeback. All eyes will surely remain on McIlroy, who has emerged as the new face of golf while Tiger Woods sits out his second straight major, trying to heal an injured leg.
"I was a day where you just needed to grind out a score," McIlroy said. "Anywhere around even par was a good start."
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