What was the most important shock of Day 1?

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The primary spherical of the 2024 Open Championship had every little thing it ought to have — rugged Scottish climate, unpredictable winds and, after all, gamers scratching their heads attempting to get out of these pesky pot bunkers. Daniel Brown (six underneath) holds the lead after an eventful Day 1. What was the most important shock on Thursday at The Open?

Josh Sens, senior author (@JoshSens): I’ll pluck the low-hanging fruit and go together with Rory McIlroy’s seven-over opening spherical. Little doubt he drew among the worst of the climate, however a number of of his stumbles — the OB tee shot on 11, the detached wedge on 13 and so forth — appeared as a lot psychological glitches as something. I’m undecided that something in hyperlinks golf counts as a real shocker — we’re imagined to count on the surprising — however typically what’s even tougher to get a deal with on lately is what’s occurring in Rory’s head.

Josh Berhow, managing editor (@Josh_Berhow): Daniel Brown is 29 years previous and making his first main begin, and earlier than his 61st-place end on the Genesis Scottish Open, he had missed six cuts and withdrew from one other event in a seven-event span. So after all he leads! He birdied two of the final three and didn’t make a bogey for a superb main debut. However aside from Brown’s surge up the leaderboard, the reply needs to be Rory. Like so many others I believed he’d actually bounce again this week, however we didn’t see that at this time.

Jack Hirsh, assistant editor (@JR_HIRSHey): It’s Justin Thomas’ late-round restoration. He took the lead at 4 underneath, which, regardless of his opening-round 62 final week, is shocking by itself. However then his spherical may have gone off the rails when he couldn’t do something with the perfect drive of the day on 11, doubled 12 and bogeyed 13. I believed we had been heading for a 75 and finally one other missed minimize in what’s been an extended streak of weird play from the two-time main winner. However he righted the ship, knocked it stiff on 17, one of many hardest holes all day, and made a strong birdie putt on the final to seize the perfect spherical of the morning wave.

Ryan Barath, tools editor (@rdsbarath): Rory’s first spherical was actually surprising, and to be honest so was Bryson DeChambeau’s. Each of those gamers dealt with powerful circumstances at Pinehurst extraordinarily properly, and at this time I hoped to see them jockeying for place atop the leaderboard at Royal Troon — not sitting properly beneath the potential cutline. If I had a second decide, I agree with Jack in that Justin Thomas’ restoration was not what I used to be anticipating after his mid-round troubles. He nonetheless continues to wrestle with consistency, and after the double bogey I used to be half anticipating a full ejection.

Dylan Dethier, senior author (@dylan_dethier): The largest shock, for me, was a pleasant one: Troon performed powerful! I do know the fellas snuck a pair low ones by on the finish (shoutout Dan Brown) however the truth that solely 17 execs are underneath par after the primary spherical means good scores had been properly earned. The one factor higher than an Open is a troublesome Open. Can’t look forward to the remainder of the week.