‘The tougher the better.’ Canadian Mackenzie Hughes flirts with Open Championship lead in windy first round

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This article was published 15/07/2021 (1908 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s something about major championships that brings out the best in Canadian golfer Mackenzie Hughes — even one he’s never played before.

In his Open Championship debut, Hughes shot a 4-under 66 on Thursday and was tied for fourth, trailing leader Louis Oosthuizen — the 2010 champion — by two shots at windy Royal St. George’s in Sandwich, England.

The Dundas, Ont. golfer had it to 5-under at one point and was alone atop the leaderboard, but made bogey on the par-4 15th and surrendered the lead. Hughes hit 11 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens. He was solid with the putter as well — including a tricky par-saver on his closing hole.

“I got off to a nice start, lots of good shots, hitting a lot of fairways — which, around here, you hit a bunch of fairways it’s making your life a lot easier,” said Hughes. “Not maybe the finish I would’ve liked, but if you told me I was going to shoot 4-under today I would’ve taken it in a heartbeat.”

The last time Hughes teed it up at a major was in the last group for the final round of the U.S. Open. It was a learning experience, he said at the time. He was tied for the lead going into Sunday but unravelled, shot 6-over 77 and ended up tied for 15th.

On Thursday, he seemed unfazed by the challenge that is links golf.

“You have to just hit shots. There is not a lot of driving-range type shots where you just stand out there and hit a normal shot. A lot of manipulation and creativity involved,” said Hughes. “I feel like I do all right in this setting.”

He’s in prime position to contend for the second straight major: 52 of the last 60 Open winners were within four shots of the lead after the first round.

Jace Walker, Hughes’ caddy, told the Star the Canadian had “complete control” of his golf ball all day despite having never played an Open Championship: “Such a good mindset — patient and confident. It’s a good combo. The tougher the better for us.”

There were more good shots than bad in Hughes’ group. Playing alongside American Brian Harmon and South African Dylan Frittelli, the trio shot a combined 13-under. Frittelli matched Hughes’ 4-under total, while Harmon finished at 5-under, tied for second with Jordan Spieth.

“It was easier to get going because of the guys in my group that were playing well, and just kind of feeding off each other,” said Hughes.

Spieth has finished inside the top 20 in four of his last five Open starts — including a 2017 win at Royal Birkdale — and seems to thrive on linksy layouts, even when he’s been struggling.

“I think it brings a lot of the feel aspect into the game,” said Spieth. “(There are) a lot of external factors over here, and I think that external is where I need to be living.”

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While Spieth is a three-time major champion, the Canadian contenders are still looking for their first major since Mike Weir’s 2003 triumph at Augusta National.

Also in the hunt is Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont. Besides his final-group appearance at the U.S. Open, Conners finished in the top 10 at the last two Masters and held the first-round lead at the PGA Championship. He got off to another solid start Thursday — 2-under 68, tied for 19th — and said he was inspired by Hughes’ solid play earlier in the day.

“Canadians are playing well, so it’s exciting to see. It definitely motivated me to try to have a good round as well,” said Conners, who battled high winds through the afternoon.

The other two Canadians didn’t fare as well. Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., and Richard T. Lee of Toronto both shot 5-over 75.

Adam Stanley is an Ottawa-based contributor to the Star’s Sports section and the host of golf podcast Next Round’s On Me. Follow him on Twitter: @adam_stanley