ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Rory McIlroy owned the headlines after storming to the British Open lead with a major championship-record-tying 9-under-par 63.
But just two strokes behind McIlroy is little-known 27-year-old South African Louis Oosthuizen, who shot a 7-under-par 65 yesterday.
Oosthuizen, who was 8-under entering his last two holes, actually looked as if he might join McIlroy at 9-under, but he bogeyed the 17th hole.
Nevertheless, that wasn’t enough to dampen his spirits.
“It’s holy ground we’re walking on,” he said of St. Andrews.
Oosthuizen, who has missed the cut in three previous starts at the British Open, said a win earlier in the season has helped his approach.
“It was really a matter of getting my confidence up,” he said. “I came close to winning a few times on the European Tour, and I think the win in Malaga [Spain] early on in the year got my confidence going a bit.”
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Until recently, Andrew Coltart had plans for this week’s British Open, but they had nothing to do with shooting a 6-under-par 66 in yesterday’s opening round.
Coltart, who last played in the British Open in 2002 and was a Ryder Cup player for Europe before his career went south, was supposed to do some broadcasting work for the BBC.
But he got into the field through local qualifying and is three shots off the lead entering today’s second round.
Coltart, who recalled missing 16 cuts in a row, had considered quitting the game.
“Those questions were starting to rear their heads in my mind,” he said. “I was wondering what was out there, how much longer I could go. It was pretty demoralizing.
“By all means this round is a bit of a surprise.”
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McIlroy came within a missed four-foot birdie putt on No. 17 of shooting 62, which would have been a record-low round in the major championship.
“It sort of went through my mind on 17 that 62 would have been the lowest round in a major,” McIlroy said. “That’s probably why I missed the putt. Definitely the one on 17 was one I let get away.”
Nevertheless, McIlroy said he still is happy with his round, despite the disappointing par on 17.
“No, I don’t think I can come off feeling let down,” he said. “I’m leading the Open Championship.”
Said Lucas Glover, who was playing with McIlroy: “I was pulling for him on 17, because I had the feeling he’d birdie 18, and I thought to re-write the record books would be cool.”
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Tiger Woods, who shot a 5-under 67, said he was “very pleased with” the new Nike putter he’s using this week to help him on the slow St. Andrews greens.
“It comes off faster, and these greens are just the slowest I’ve seen in a long time, if ever, and especially with the moisture they have out there,” he said.
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Reigning British Amateur champion Jin Jeong shot an opening-round 4-under 68. . . . Defending champion Stewart Cink shot 70, and Tom Watson, who lost to Cink in last year’s playoff, shot a 73. . . . Nick Faldo, who spends most of his time as a commentator on TV, shot 72 and said of the easy morning conditions, “For the real golfers this was for the taking. For me, it just makes it playable.”
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Justin Rose, who has won two of his last three tournaments, shot a disappointing 70.
“That’s the vagaries of golf,” he said. “You don’t always have it. You wake up on one side of the bed, and you go out and play and do the best you can. [Today] I will come out and might just find a beautiful rhythm and go low.”