The Open: Tommy Fleetwood sets pace, Rory McIlroy & Jon Rahm among late starters

Tommy Fleetwood raised hopes of a archetypal English victor of The Open successful 31 years with a superb five-under-par 66 connected the opening greeting astatine Royal Liverpool.

Royal Liverpool subordinate Matthew Jordan, who deed the archetypal tee changeable of the championship, changeable a 69 and is level with 2017 champion Jordan Spieth.

World fig 2 Rory McIlroy is among the aboriginal starters successful circular one.

Not since Nick Faldo won his 3rd Claret Jug astatine Muirfield successful 1992 has an Englishman been crowned champion golfer of the year. The past subordinate to triumph connected English ungraded was Tony Jacklin successful 1969 astatine Royal Birkdale.

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You could truthful recognize the roars of delight arsenic occurrence starved fans watched Fleetwood person a tally of 3 successive birdies from the 14th and past sound successful a coagulated four-foot par putt connected the last.

The 32-year-old, who hails from 30 miles up the Merseyside seashore successful Southport, has a champion decorativeness of 2nd successful 2019 and was associated 4th past year.

Fleetwood scorched circular the backmost 9 successful conscionable 32 shots, easy attracting the biggest pursuing of the aboriginal starters connected the Wirral coast.

He was playing with satellite fig 1 Scottie Scheffler who birdied the past to grounds a one-under 70, portion Australian Adam Scott had a double-bogey 7 to extremity 1 over.

And conscionable arsenic helium holed his last putt, satellite fig 2 McIlroy, playing with fig 3 ranked Jon Rahm and location favourite Justin Rose, was giving his young girl a hug earlier walking to the archetypal tee.

Wyndham Clark, who held disconnected McIlroy to triumph the US Open past month, birdied the past to articulation chap American and 2009 Open champion Stewart Cink connected 3 under.

Clark was playing with defending champion Cameron Smith, who opened with a one-over 72, and Olympic golden medallist Xander Schauffele who changeable a 70.

Jordan delights aboriginal risers

The hundreds of fans who streamed done the gates astatine 06:00 BST made consecutive for the archetypal tee to warrant a bully presumption of Jordan, who was connected the Royal Liverpool chipping greens aged 3 earlier pursuing his dada and grandad successful becoming a subordinate astatine the property of seven.

At 06:35 precisely the 27-year-old drilled his tee changeable to immense cheers, his mum Laura telling BBC Radio 5 Live: "That was amazing. He's dreamed of this since helium was a small boy, playing this people with his dad."

And aft signing for his 69, helium said the acquisition had been "amazing," adding: "I'm moving retired of words to picture it. It was crazy, loud, everything that I could person wished for.

"I'm trying to deliberation of a amended acquisition than that, and I don't deliberation I can."

More to follow.