THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LUSS — Darren Clarke upstaged his fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell with a 6-under 65 to take the lead in the first round of the Scottish Open on Thursday.
McDowell, returning to tournament golf and his European Tour roots for the first time since his win in the U.S. Open, could shoot only a level 71 on a blustery day at Loch Lomond.
He openly blamed some of the victory parties he has attended in the past two weeks, claiming "There were a few good swings in there and a few champagne swings as well."
Two birdies at his final two holes at least allowed the hero of Pebble Beach to finish up alongside Phil Mickelson, making his first appearance in Europe since winning the Masters in April.
They were both 44 places down the leaderboard behind Clarke, the former Ryder Cup star who was one of McDowell’s early mentors but who in recent months, after slipping to 179 in the world, has considered retirement.
"I have been frustrated," admitted 41-year-old Clarke. "I have been telling everyone I have been hitting the ball well but I haven’t been able to hole putts.
"But at the French Open last week I changed my setup with my caddie Brendan McCurtain and started rolling the ball better again.
"I did it at Adare Manor in Ireland early in the week and managed to win there and I am a bit of a confidence player. When I start seeing the ball going in the hole, the whole game seems a lot easier to me."
Although Clarke had six birdies on his card and no bogeys despite playing in the afternoon when Loch Lomond suffered a series of heavy rain showers, his first-round lead could have been more than just one shot.
He missed two more birdie opportunities inside 10 feet on the 15th and 16th greens.
One shot behind Clarke were England’s Graeme Storm and Italy’s Edoardo Molinari, who both shot 66 in milder morning weather, and Irishman Damien McGrane.
With the British Open at St. Andrews next week, the Scottish Open attracted several other U.S. tour players beside Mickelson.
John Daly, who won the British Open at St. Andrews in 1995, produced their best return of the day with a 67 to lie just two shots off the lead.
He then admitted he needed further success at the home of golf since he is being chased by U.S. tax authorities for an outstanding $1 million bill.
In the group of six players alongside Daly on 4-under was Japanese teenager Ryo Ishikawa.