Adam Scott found himself hitting different clubs around Royal Troon on Thursday morning than what he’d practiced with.
He wasn’t alone.
Competitors arrived for their opening rounds at this 152nd Open Championship and were greeted with a different wind. After blowing mainly from the northwest and west during the practice days, the wind changed direction on Thursday morning, coming from the south and even briefly from the southeast. As a result, the usually easier front nine played into a consistent 10-15 mph fan.
“That was wild,” said Justin Thomas, who hadn’t played the front nine in this wind, though he still managed to take the early clubhouse lead with a 3-under 68. “I remember trying to drive 1 and 3 in 2016.”
On Thursday, Thomas hit 7-iron into the first green and had a wedge into the third. He also was unable to reach either par 5, having at least 90 yards left for his third shots into the fourth and sixth greens.
“Yeah, completely changed,” added Min Woo Lee. “The way the ball was bouncing on the back nine was exactly the way the front nine was playing. It was very different to what I practiced. … Going from a very easier nine, hitting 7-iron, 6-iron off the tees turned into 2-irons. Same as the back nine. You normally hit driver, and now you’re hitting 4-iron.”
The flip in wind direction, at least so far, has had a fairly drastic effect on scoring. Back in 2016, the front nine featured just two of the eight hardest holes for the week – Nos. 5 (eighth toughest) and 9 (seven toughest). Just before 10 a.m. ET, the front accounted for five of the eight most difficult holes, including No. 5 (second toughest) and No. 9 (third toughest). No. 12, which also played into the wind, was the most difficult.
“It’s going to play as easy as it can all week, I think, because the ball is getting up there on these holes, like the 11th,” Adam Scott said. “Last time I played it, it was 2-irons and 3-irons into every hole, and today it was a sand wedge into 15.”
Justin Rose didn’t record a bogey, adding two birdies to shoot 69. Rose offered some different thoughts on the wind, commenting not so much on the direction but the consistency.
“I think today is great,” Rose said. “I think, what is it, 12 to 15 miles an hour? That’s kind of the edge where you’re in control of the golf ball and the elements aren’t in control, and I think that’s a nice way to play. I think when it gets more than that, the elements dictate a little bit more than the player dictates, and I think that’s where it just becomes, OK, just hang in, hang tough, see what happens.
“But I think if you can stay feeling like you’re in control over the good shots, and if you hit a good shot you’ll likely know what the outcome is going to be, that’s a nice way to play to golf, and I think that’s how it was today.”
A similar wind direction is expected for Friday’s second round, though with up to 27 mph gusts (compared to 23 mph on Thursday), while the weekend could lighter winds shift more in from the west, also known as crosswind territory.