The stands behind the first tee at Turnberry are empty when, at 0630am, England's Paul Broadhurst strikes the first shot of the 138th Open Championship - and goes on to begin his challenge with a par-four
Tom Watson, the winner at Turnberry in 1977 after the classic 'Duel in the Sun' with Jack Nicklaus, picks up two early birdies in his 32nd Open
Australian Greg Norman, the winner at Turnberry in 1986 and joint third in last year's championship at the age of 53, lines up a putt on the 2nd green
American Mark Calcavecchia is another former champion out on the course early - and the 1989 winner at Royal Troon, accompanied by bag-carrying wife Brenda, sinks four birdies in an excellent round of 67
Tennis star Ana Ivanovic joins the crowd at the Ailsa Course to keep an eye on the progress of Australian boyfriend Adam Scott
The pairing of three-time Open champion Tiger Woods with 17-year-old Japanese sensation Ryo Ishikawa makes for a fascinating first-round contest
Lee Westwood (shown here driving) made for a group with Woods and Ishikawa that was trailed by a huge throng of fans and media contingent
Australian John Senden, a tournament reserve until he secured a place in the field when Jeev Milkha Singh withdrew due to injury on Tuesday, takes an early clubhouse lead with a round of 66
Missing the fairways is a bad idea at Turnberry as Japan's Yuta Ikeda discovers at the 8th where he cards a double bogey six on the way to a 76
Mark O'Meara, the 1998 Open champion, shoots an opening round of 67 and is amongst the early leaders
Watson rolls back to years with a superb opening round of 65 to snatch the clubhouse lead from Australian John Senden
Colombian Camilo Villegas bogeys the first hole but birdies the fourth and four of the last five to give him an opening round of 66
Villegas is joined on four under by unheralded Australian Mathew Goggin, who raps in a stunning 40-foot putt at the last to put himself firmly among the chasing pack
No prizes for guessing who has donned the most remarkable outfit of the day - Ian Poulter rocks up in his trademark low-key gear but suffers a shocking start, dropping three shots in his opening five holes
Irishman Padraig Harrington is aiming for a hat-trick of Open titles after winning at Carnoustie in 2007 and Royal Birkdale in 2008. He comes into the tournament out of form, but makes an encouraging start
Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy, 19, is bidding to become the second youngest champion of The Open. He gets himself into all sorts of trouble at times, but the odd birdie keeps him on a pretty even keel
There is another familiar face from across the pond high up the leaderboard - 2003 Open champion Ben Curtis finds something like his A-game to finish with four birdies in the last six holes and join Watson on five under
Golf can be a lonely game at times and Poulter takes a moment on the ninth tee to reflect on a poor start. It does not get a whole lot better, though - he ends five over after a birdie-less 75
American John Daly is the only man to run Poulter close in the fashion stakes, but he enjoys a far more productive day at the office, the 1995 Open champion posting a 68 to sit only four off the lead
It seems like Watson and Curtis are set to hold the overnight lead, but Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez has other ideas. He birdies 17 and 18 to fire a stunning 64 and sit pretty on his own at the top of the leaderboard
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