The Open Championship, St Andrews, 15-18 July
Coverage: Live on BBC TV, Red Button, BBC Sport website, with updates on BBC Radio 5 live Full coverage details

Scotland fired birdies at the first and last holes

By Ged Scott BBC Sport at St Andrews

Zane Scotland broke his driver on his first return to the Open Championship in 11 years but his Old Course experience did not break his spirit.

The Manchester-born Surrey golfer shot a very tidy two-under 70 thanks to birdies at the first and last.

But that birdie at 18 proved costly as it split the head of his driver in two, forcing some emergency repairs.

"I was lucky it didn't happen earlier in the round, but it will get sorted," the 27-year-old told BBC Sport.

Scotland headed straight off from the 18th to seek some assistance at the repair van on the practice ground.

But he was confident the club will be ready to be used in Friday's second round.

"It will mean a new head," he said. "But I'll get them to keep the shaft as I love that shaft."

Apart from his closing, driver-shattering birdie, Scotland had also opened with one, even though he admitted: "Although the adrenalin was pumping on the first tee, when [starter] Ivor Robson called out my name, suddenly the head of my two iron looked a lot smaller. But that birdie settled me down."

Scotland, now 27, then followed that up with a birdie at the fifth as he made a confident opening, in stark contrast to the 82 he shot on his Open debut at Carnoustie in 1999.

Scotland then rattled off 11 straight pars before his only dropped shot at 17, when he hooked his tee shot left into heavy rough. But he rapidly put it right at 18 before trooping off to admit, one broken driver apart, how much he had enjoyed his round.

"I was playing with Jamie Abbott, who's a really good guy, an amateur, which reminded me of my amateur days," he said.

"I found there were a few things I remembered from 1999, so it's nice to know I've learned something in 11 years.

"I was looking up at the leaderboard and seeing the good scores and thinking that I'd had the chances and not really forced it. But the wind changed round coming home and that made life more difficult."

Now Scotland is hoping for another 70 or better on Friday, to see him through to the weekend.

"The goal is to shoot under par again. Looking at previous Opens here on TV, having watched film of Seve here in 1984, the key seems to be to get off to a steady start, score in the middle and keep it together on the way in.

"I've shot a couple of 66s and a 67 in the Dunhill, so I feel quite comfortable."

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