Keep that card
Phil Mickelson: Lefty hasn't won anywhere on the planet since his 2013 British Open triumph at Muirfield. After Thursday's round on the other side of Scotland, he's in good position at another run for a Claret Jug. Mickelson was masterful Thursday, firing a bogey-free 63 that finished with a near-miss 16-footer for birdie on the 18th hole that would have been good for the first 62 in major championship history. He missed only three greens and two fairways on a picture-perfect day alongside the Irish Sea.
Toss that card
Jason Day: The world's No. 1 player shot a 2-over-par 73 on a day 50 of his lesser-ranked peers found red numbers. Day finished the front nine — the easier of the two at Troon — with a pair of bogeys then made eight consecutive pars before finishing his round with a bogey at the last. Day might be one of the few players hoping for bad weather because it might be his best way to get back into the tournament. "I'm already missing greens anyways," he said.
On the course with …
Colin Montgomerie: The 53-year-old Scotsman hit the first shot of the British Open bright and early at Royal Troon, his home course. Five strokes later Monty was 2-over-par after a disastrous double bogey to open his round. How? His second shot landed in what he described as a "horrendous" position and he couldn't get the ball out of the bunker. The third shot looped up and rolled back into his footprint — "and my footprint is deeper than most," Montgomerie said, jokingly — so he had to hit the ball out sideways with his fourth shot, then convert the up-and-down. He rebounded to finish even par for the day.
Open moment
Louis Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion from South Africa, aced the par-3 No. 14 from 167 yards, his ball pitching in front of the hole and curling into the cup. He threw his arms up in celebration for what was his second hole-in-one at a major this year, after acing the 16th in the final round of the Masters.
Chip shots
• Wisconsin's Steve Stricker scrambled to make par on the opening hole but settled down to shoot a 4-under 67. At 49, Stricker's days in majors are winding down. He is not yet qualified for the PGA Championship in two weeks and said he will not file for an exemption. "I want to earn it," he said. Thursday was a good start.
• Martin Kaymer's 66 was his lowest round of the year. It's a season that has included top-10 finishes at the Spanish Open, the Irish Open and the BMW PGA Championship.
• Chris Wood withdrew after 12 holes, citing a neck injury. The Englishman was 3 over.
Key hole
Par-4, 482-yard No. 11: Fourteen players posted scores worse than double bogey on the hole known as "The Railway," including three 9s. There were only six birdies.
Quote of the day
"Whatever the wind or rain or if it's cold or hot, it's not really going to make a difference to me."
— Patrick Reed, on the ever- changing weather conditions associated with a British Open
Tweet of the day
"Phil, you made a beautiful read and putt on that last hole, but got absolutely stone-cold robbed."
— Eighteen-time major champion Jack Nicklaus (@jacknicklaus), who missed a putt just inside 3 feet for a 62 in the 1980 U.S. Open at Baltusrol.
Day 2
Round 2 got underway just after 12:30 a.m. Central time Friday morning. Conditions aren't supposed to be all-time brutal, but don't expect sun-splashed fairways, either. There's a near-100 percent chance of rain with winds 10-15 miles per hour. The Golf Channel once again has wall-to-wall television coverage.
