Rory McIlroy quest to win the only major that has so far eluded him began somewhat frustratingly as he signed for a one-over par opening round of 73 at the US Masters in Augusta.
McIlroy is seven shots off the lead with Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka both sharing the lead on six-under-par.
Koepka was the only player not to card a single bogey on day one at Augusta National, but was denied the outright lead by a stunning finish from compatriot Bryson DeChambeau.
DeChambeau birdied the 15th, was inches away from a hole-in-one on the 16th, chipped in on the 17th and hit the pin from 196 yards on the last to match Koepka's six-under-par total.
Seeking to become the oldest major champion ever, 48-year-old Phil Mickelson was a shot off the lead following a 67, with Ian Poulter and Dustin Johnson a shot further back and Tiger Woods four off the pace on two under.
Defending champion Patrick Reed also shot 73 while world number one Justin Rose and 2015 champion Jordan Spieth both struggled to rounds of 75.
Lefty magic from @PhilMickelson. 👍#LiveUnderPar pic.twitter.com/G9SEYSwF6C
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) April 12, 2019
The 29-year-old McIlroy was two over par for the day after bogeys on the 10th and 11th but rallied superbly to birdie the 13th, 15th and 16th, only to drop shots on the last two holes.
The last 13 Masters champions were all inside the top 10 after the opening round and McIlroy found himself outside the top 40 at the time of signing his card.
"I felt the course was there," McIlroy said.
"It's soft. There's not much wind. I made five birdies, that wasn't the problem. I just made too many mistakes. And I'm making mistakes from pretty simple positions, just off the side of the green, 17 and 18 being prime examples of that.
"I'm going to go to the putting green right now and try to figure this out, just sort of reads more than anything else. I over-read a few early on, and then I started to under-read them coming in.
"I think just whenever the greens are a little slower, they don't break as much. The greens are maybe two or three feet slower than they usually are, just because it's been so soft and the rain. They will get faster as the week goes on, so it's just a matter of adjusting."
McIlroy's 73 was his worst opening round since a 74 in 2010 and the Northern Irishman added: "You know you're going to have chances. There's birdie opportunities.
"I can accept mistakes if I'm trying and it's not a mental error, but six bogeys out there is a little too many and I'm just going to need to tidy that up over the next few days."
Tiger Woods who had contended for the last two majors of the year carried on where he left off at Augusta, carding four birdies and two bogeys in an opening 70.
"I thought I hit a lot of good shots and if I missed I missed in the correct spots and had some of the simpler up and downs because of that," Woods told ESPN.
"I missed a few (putts) for sure, misread a couple and hit one bad one at six but other than that a good solid day."
Seeking a fifth Masters title but a first since 2005, Woods had quietly reached the 14th hole in two under par before a pulled tee shot set up a moment of magic from the former world number one.
Spotting a gap high in the pines, Woods threaded his second shot perfectly through the opening and on to the green, where he holed from 25 feet for an unlikely birdie.
That took the 43-year-old into a share of the lead but he bogeyed the 17th and had to save par on the last after finding sand off the tee.
Coincidentally, Woods shot 70 in the first round of each of his first three Masters victories and since lying 33rd after an opening 74 in his 2005 triumph, the last 13 champions were all inside the top 10 after the opening round.
Shane Lowry endured a difficult opening round at Augusta and has plenty to do if he's going to hang around for the weekend, posting a six-over 78.
The Clara golfer, who has enjoyed a bright start to 2019 with victory in Dubai in February, opened with a bogey on the first hole following a wayward drive.
But he got back to even par shortly afterwards after sinking a 7ft putt for birdie on the 3rd hole. That, however, would be it as far as birdie column is concerned for his opening round.
He scrambled well to remain at even par for the opening six holes but thereafter, the wheels came off.
A disastrous stretch between the 7th and 13th holes saw him register five bogeys in seven holes. A sloppy drive cost him at the 7th hole and his approach to the 9th landed him in the greenside bunker, from where he was unable to get up and down.
Things got worse around the turn. Despite a perfect drive on 10, Lowry's approach fell short of the green and he was unable to save par. He recovered from a ropey drive to make an excellent par on 11 but was then unable to save par from the greenside bunker on 12.
With his round unraveling, he pulled his drive on the famous 13th left of Rae's Creek and was forced to take a drop. From there, he couldn't save bogey.
He steadied it somewhat from there but found the water on 16 and registered another bogey. Another almost followed on the 18th but the Offaly man was rolled in a 10 foot putt to at least limit the substantial damage.
"It's the hardest course in the world when it's getting away from you," he said after the six-over-par 78.
"Because you're hitting good shots to 30 feet and you've got a putt with ten feet of break in it.
"I tried my best. I can't put my finger on it right now. I'll just have to go out tomorrow, try to shoot a good score and see what happens.
"I put too much pressure on myself to get here and then I put too much pressure on myself when I get here to do well. It is all internal in my own head so I need to go and relax and let the golf take care of itself.
"Like I said during the week, I am happy to be here. But am I happy to be here now? I am not sure."
