Ryan Fox has work to do to keep his Masters cut streak alive after a difficult opening round at Augusta, while defending champion Rory McIlroy made an early statement.
McIlroy holds a share of the clubhouse lead with American Sam Burns after both opened with five-under 67s.
Fox is well back after a five-over 77, with his lack of tournament golf in the lead-up to the Masters — following a bout of kidney stones — showing early in his round.
Most of the damage came on the front nine. Fox opened with bogeys at the first two holes, immediately putting himself on the back foot.
His first shot of the tournament found a fairway bunker at the opening hole, and after chipping past the pin he missed a par putt from about 2m. At the par-five second, his drive went well left, forcing him to take a drop, and another par chance slipped by.
Fox missed a birdie opportunity at the third, before further dropped shots at the fifth, sixth and seventh saw him reach five-over through nine holes.
At the fifth, he three-putted after leaving an uphill birdie attempt well short. At the par-three sixth, a clever chip on his second shot gave him a chance to save par, but he could not convert from around 3m. Another three-putt bogey followed at the seventh, including a miss from close range.
A further bogey at the par-four 10th, after his drive found the pine straw, dropped him to six-over before he began to settle through Amen Corner.
Fox gave himself birdie looks at the 11th, 12th and 13th, but could not take any of them — chances that may have changed the complexion of his round.
His first birdie of the day finally arrived at the par-four 17th, where his approach from 146m finished within 3.5m of the hole.
Fox is in a share of 65th, with the top 50 players and ties progressing to the weekend. The projected cut line is currently three-over. He is due to tee off again at 3.39am NZT tomorrow.
Burns set the early pace with an eagle at the second and three birdies on the back nine. McIlroy then surged into a share of the lead with consecutive birdies at the 13th, 14th and 15th. He made six birdies for the round, with his only dropped shot coming at the par-four third.
The Northern Irishman said winning a first green jacket had eased the pressure of returning as champion.
McIlroy said it was easier chasing a second Masters title once the first had been secured, even though there were still moments at Augusta where players could feel tense over certain shots.
Australia’s Jason Day, American Kurt Kitayama and 2018 champion Patrick Reed all opened with three-under 69s to sit two shots off the lead.
World No 1 Scottie Scheffler, a two-time Masters champion, carded a two-under 70, alongside Justin Rose, who was runner-up to McIlroy last year. Shane Lowry and Xander Schauffele were also at two-under.
LIV Golf pair Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm were well off the pace after opening rounds of four-over and six-over respectively.
Veteran Fred Couples, the 1992 champion playing in his 41st Masters, was two-under through 14 holes before disaster struck at the par-five 15th, where two balls in the water led to a quadruple-bogey nine. He finished with a six-over 78.
