- DAY TWO of The Open at Royal Troon with American Phil Mickelson leading the pack by fourshots.
- Mickelson was cruelly denied record-breaking 62 yesterday - what would have been lowest ever score in a Major.
- Frenchman Clement Sordet in tears for victims of Nice terrorism on first tee.
- Soren Kjeldsen and Zach Johnson chasing Mickelson, Martin Kaymer out on the course, Patrick Reed tees off at 1:04pm
- Refresh browser for updates
20.00: What a struggle that was for Spieth to make the cut, and he said after his round he would need "a few pints tonight" to get over it. FULL STORY HERE.
19.35: As it stands the projected cut is +4. That's what Jordan Spieth and Danny Willett are on at the moment...
19.16: Steve Stricker managed to avoid throwing himself in the sea after that quadruple bogey on the 15th and post a +4 round of 74. He's level par for the tournament.
19.13: And now there's barely a breath of wind around Royal Troon. You couldn't make it up.
19.04: 'Take that elephant back to the zoo and book me a hotel! I'm playing at the weekend! Back of the cup!'
19.02: Jason Day is now in short sleeves as he tees off at 17. Ah, the British summer. Meanwhile, there's a shot back for Rory McIlroy as he drains one at the par-five 16th. He's back to -2.
18.54: Rickie Fowler has suffered massively with the weather today, particularly on the back nine where he's dropped three shots in six holes. Just hearing that the cut is now projected to be +4 which is handy for Danny Willett who's just birdied 16 to go back to precisely that mark. Nice. And it means that Colin Stuart Montgomerie is back in too!
18.48: Over at 18 we can see Jordan Spieth closing out with a par for a round of 75 and a +4 total of 146. Will he make the cut? Quite possibly. Meanwhile, Justin Rose's round ends with a double bogey at the last. Ouch. He's +3 now after a round of 77. Not his greatest day but not surprising considering the conditions he faced.
18.45: So close for Rory McIlroy at 15 as his 30-footer from the front of the green pulls up six inches short of the cup. Lovely putt but just needed a wee more welly. Despite his outburst, Bubba's hanging in there and a par at 15 keeps him on +4. Still a chance for him to make the cut.
18.39: Bubba Watson is in danger of doing himself a mischief. He's just hit his approach into 15 and as it pulls up short, he spins on the spot like a schoolboy in mid-tantrum and screams "I can't hit that any better!!!" Maybe not Bubba, but you can take a club more.
18.28: There Steve Stricker was, making par at every hole he even looked at when a lost ball at the hellish 15th ends up with a dirty great eight on his scorecard. To paraphrase Sir Alex Ferguson. Golf eh? Bloody hell....
18.26: If the sorry sight of the world's greatest golfers being rendered impotent by Royal Troon and/or Mother Nature is getting you down then allow us to put a smile back on your face. You're welcome.
18.20: The briefest, most fleeting joy for Justin Rose as he holes a beauty at 16 to save his par. Despite the conditions and the fiendish nature of the back nine at Troon, Rose has made par at all of them. Shame his front nine was so patchy. He could have been a contender.
18.15: We probably won't see Bubba Watson though. Despite that electric start to his first round, he's been a bit of a mess today and another bogey at the 13th means he's now at +5. Not exactly suited to how high he hits the ball really, is it?
18.13: If the cut does get pushed back to +4 then it won't be just Monty that benefits. We'll also see GMac, Jim Furyk, Paul Lawrie, BrandtSnedeker, Jordan Spieth and Vijay Singh all gainfully employed for the weekend. We'll soon find out.
18.11: The wheels are coming off for Rory McIlory. He's struggled to cope with the change in conditions (as has everyone) and he's just dropped another shot at the 13th. He's now back to -1 while Phil Mickelson sits in the clubhouse in a big leather arm chair, stroking a white cat and laughing like a maniac.
18.07: It's leathering it down. The wind is blowing a gale. And it's very cold. Maybe the new Environment Secretary Andrea Leadsom's right. Maybe there is no global warming after all? Mind you, as someone who can't play golf to save their life (not that it will ever come to that I hope) it's nice to see all these multi-millionaires muling, puking and belly-aching about the conditions. It's great. Time also to reconsider the cut mark. I'm going for +4 which would also mean a reprieve for this massive hunk of man...
18.03: 'Hey Phil! Have you seen the conditions?'
18.00: It says something when you can look back on the torrential rain of this morning and think just how glorious the scoring conditions were back then.
17.55: The net result of all this poor weather is that the projected cut has now gone back to +3 which offers hope to the likes of Jordan Spieth, Luke Donald and, I have to say, Robert Rock and Brendan Steele, both of whom are on the cut mark and both of whom should really quit golf and become a maverick TV cop duo. Rock & Steele. I can see it now. And I will sue if I ever see it on the box.
17.54: It's absolutely sheeting it down on the course now and that must have had some impact on McIlroy's bunker shot at 12 which is uncharacteristically poor. He's out, which is good, but he's only on the edge of the green, which is bad, especially when he then misses the par putt. Back to -2 for boy wonder.
17.48: Trouble ahead for Rory McIlroy who's squirted a shot out of the rough to the left of the 12th fairway but only into the grenade bunker. On the hole ahead, meanwhile, there's yet another par for Steve Stricker who's now done the same on every hole he's played. Solid.
17.40: Pat Reed so nearly holes another beast of a putt on the 18th but will have to settle for par and around of 74 today. Meanwhile, Colin Montgomerie is in the commentary box and he likes what he sees. "I like Pat Reed," he says. "He's got bottle, as we say around here." And everyone says everywhere else too.
17.38: No chance you mentalists...
17.30: Ryder Cup skipper is home and hosed. It's a 72 for the former big man and with a total of +1 he should be in the hat for the weekend's action. Cue old picture.
17.29: The good news for those sadists among you is that the wind is picking up and the rain's coming in! Hurrah!
17.23: Rory, Rory, Rory! Another shot gone as he misses another Gordon Strachan* at the 10th. He's back to -3 and all that solid groundwork of the front nine is fast evaporating. He wants to take a leaf out of Pat Reed's book. He's just holed a monster putt at the 17th to claw back one of the four shots he's already dropped on the back nine. He's now at -2.
(* annoying five-footers)
17.17: If you're a South African golf fan of a nervous disposition then look away now. Louis Oosthuizen, the hole-in-one hero of the first round has taken a nine at the fiendish 11th and then made more bogeys at the 13th and the 14th (where he made the ace yesterday). He's now +10 over for the day and the tournament.Ouch.
17.12: Good to see Jason Day starting to find his feet. The world number one reached the turn in -3 and has just narrowly missed another birdie opportunity at the 10th. Proof that form is permanent and class is temporary. That's right, isn't it?
17.10: Sad to see Monty miss the cut today. By the way, this isn't his reaction to it. This was his reaction when he realised he was minutes too late for afternoon tea. Unlucky.
17.05: DROPPED SHOT FOR McILROY! It's a simple three-footer for par at the 9th and it hits the rim and spins out. That was sloppy, especially as he was going so well.
17.00: It's Friday, it's 5 o'clock and that can only mean one thing! Yes, it's the JUSTIN ROSE MISSED BIRDIE PUTT SLOT! Another one goes begging for the Englishman at the 11th. Not a single birdie for him today so far. It's tough going. Well, I say 'tough' but it's not like he's working down a mine, is it? He's just bludgeoning a little white ball around a big field for the afternoon.
16.53: While Rory and Bubba made their pars at the Postage Stamp, it wasn't such happy camping for the Masters champion Danny Willett in the group behind. He made double bogey and he's in very real danger of missing the cut now, standing at +3. Just think of Augusta man...
16.46: An exquisite bunker shot at The Postage Stamp by Rory McIlroy as he splashes out, across the green and leaves himself three or four feet for his par. Hats, or visors, off to Bubba Watson who played an even better one from the green on the other side.
16.45: Rose: textbook...
16.42: It's not happening for Justin Rose either. Standing at +1 he's just rolled a birdie putt wide on the 10th and he'll need to start making them to give himself any chance of getting back into this. As it is, he's flirting with the cut and it really could go either way.
16.39: Just revisiting the many troubles of Jordan Spieth and he actually reached the turn in 39. No idea what's happened to him but he's seriously off-colour today. Most unlike him.
16.37: Here comes Rory! Back-to-back birdies at the 6th and the 7th send him to -5 and a tie for fifth. If he keeps this going then he's going to put himself in position A going into the weekend.
16.33: Actually, it's not just the golfing world, it's the entire planet and many worlds beyond. We're gonna miss you Monty...
16:25: Colin Montgomerie has sadly missed the cut after bogeying the last hole to score a 75 and leave him at+4 - the golfing world weeps.
16.23: Day continues to climbs up the leaderboard with a magnificent snaking putt on the 6th - he isn't the world's number one golfer for nothing. He is level par now.
16.09: Jordan Spieth has had a nightmare on the Postage Stamp, shooting his first double bogey of the week after falling foul to the treacherous bunkers. He's in a spot of bother now at+3, still below the dreaded cut line...
15.59: You'll be glad to know that Jason Day has cured himself of his Newsham Power Fade and he's bagged a birdie at the 5th, draining a 10-footer to move to +1.
15.55: We should give a mention to the Aussie Scott Hend who's snuck into contention with four birdies in his first seven holes to stand at -4. He's like the golfing version of Raffles, the gentleman thief. In and out without anyone noticing.
15.48: A little light entertainment for you...
15.42: (adopts Frank Butcher persona). PAAAAAAAATTT! It's all going pear-shaped for pear-shaped Pat Read. That's his second bogey in his last three holes and he's now -4 through 10 holes.
15.38: MONTY WATCH! Time's running out for the local boy made good. He's just added another bogey to his card and now stands at +3. He's probably going to need two birdies in his last three holes to make the cut. Still, at least the birds love him.
15.34: The good news is that it's stopped raining at Royal Troon. The bad news is that the wind's picking up. A lot...
15.26: Jason Day is playing like me at the moment. He's just hit a classic Newsham approach to the 4th, with his arms collapsing rapidly, the ball hurting off wildly to the right and a shout of fore screamingout. Textbook.
15.20: Like Chris Evans and Top Gear, it's not really happening for Bubba Watson. He's just bogeyed the third and he's +2 for the round already. He's now +1 for the tournament and he really needs to steady the ship fast.
15.16: Justin Rose is not a happy bunny. Nor he is a happy golfer. The English Olympian has just notched up a double bogey seven on the par-five 4th and that's +3 through four holes. Back to even par. He even lobbed his club in anger. Uncharacteristic.
15.11: Here's a recap of the top echelons of the leaderboard: Mickelson (-10), Stenson (-9), Kjeldsen (-7), Bradley (-7), Johnson (Zach not Dustin -5), Reed (Pat not Peter -5)
15.08: I know I've been singing the portly praises of Pat Reed but he's just let me down with a bogey four at the 8th. Serves him right for going in the sand I guess.
15.05: Jason Day needs to get his skates on if he's not going to be the highest profile absentee from the weekend's action. The world number one is +1 today and +3 overall and with the cut expected to come at +1 he needs to befriend the birdie gods and quick. No such worries for Rory McIlroy. He's just rolled in a beauty at the 2nd to go to -3. Is this the start of a charge?
14.55: Incidentally, Rory McIlroy couldn't make a birdie at the first but it's a comfy par for golf anti-hero. He's still -2.
14.53: HUBBA BUBBA! Dreadful three-putt for the double Masters champion as a genuine birdie chance at the opening hole turns into a gut-wrenching bogey.
14.49: MONTY WATCH! The big man had nine straight pars on the outward half but a double bogey at 11 has pushed him back to +2. He'll need a birdie or two in his remaining holes to guarantee his place at the breakfast buffetin the field this weekend.
14.45: That's a depressing end to Sergio Garcia's round. He was going along very nicely but a three-putt at the last consigns him to a 70 and a -4 under total of 138. Still, he's not out of it, not by a long chalk.
14.41: Stinker of a start for the world number one Jason Day though. He played a delicate shot out of the greenside bunker but then missed his par putt by some distance. Bogey for Danny Willett too. No such trouble for Rickie Fowler though. He bags a bogey.
14.38: Back at the first and off goes Rory McIlroy who takes a 3-wood and punches it down the fairway, holding back a little on his follow-through. Lovely shot. Bang in position.
14.32: As the wind picks up it's a good time to tell you that the projected halfway cut looks likely to be +1 and if that's the case then we won't be seeing Lee Westwood at the weekend. Great, one of my bets goes up in smoke like a Sky Sports wire cam.
14.29: Just going off at the first is that reputablefirm of chartered accountants, Willett, Fowler and Day.
14.22: Bad start for Justin Rose. He has a putt of maybe 12-feet for his par at the opening green but it pulls up short by an inch. He looks crestfallen. Get over it man. Plenty of time to put it right. He's now -2.
14.17: Pat Reed duly makes his birdie and he's making a move in that slightly squat, low centre of gravity way of his. I like the cut of this guy's jib. Whatever a jib is.
14.14: Former champ Mark O'Meara taps in at 18 for a 72 to finish with a total of 143 (+1). That should, in all likelihood, see him here for the weekend. Well played.
14.11: Lovely tee shot at the short 5th from Pat Reed as he sends one to within 10 feet. A birdie here and he'll move to fourth on -6.
14.06: Blimey. That was an horrific tee shot from Jordan Spieth at the first hole. He went with an iron for accuracy but still slapped it way right into the galleries. Reminiscent of my own 'power fade' as I prefer to call my incurable slice. Playing partners Justin Rose and Shane Lowry show him how it's done.
14.01: After the torrential rain this morning is this the first signs of El Nino whipping up? Super Sergio Garcia flips one out of the rough on the right of the 16th fairway and should make the birdie to move to -5.
13.59: Henrik Stenson is at the 18th after a stunning round of golf and his 30-foot birdie putt, snaking from left to right, end up a foot or so to the right of the cup. That'll be a par for the Swede and a -6 round of 65 today, just one off the clubhouse leader Phil Mickelson. Stenson's playing partners, defending champ Zach Johnson and Adam Scott, finishwith a 70 (-5) anda level par 71 (level) respectively.
13;49: Keegan Bradley is one of those names that works ether way around. He should have been a hairdresser. Mind you, he is pretty decent at this golf lark and he's just made back-to-back birdies at 14 and 15 to move to -7.
13.46: You know when I said there wouldn't be any fires at Troon today? I was wrong. Turns out one of the wire cams has exploded. I blame Will Grigg.
13.42: Those three birdies from 15-17 for Dustin Johnson have kept the pre-tournament favourite in this. He's finished on -2 for a total of 140 and he'll be here for the weekend. Not such a good day for his playing partner Martin Kaymer though. The German was undone by a triple bogey 7 at the 10th and failed to recover. He's slipped back to -3.
13.37: The problem for players that suddenly start tearing up the course is that we'll invariably delve into our archives to find some embarrassing photograph or other. We'd never do that with Henrik Stenson though.
13.31: It was so hot at the Open atTroon in 1989 that there were sporadic brush fires breaking out across the course. Rest assured, that won't be happening today. Flash flooding perhaps, but not brush fires.
13.29: LEFTY'S LEAD IS CUT TO JUST ONE! Henrik Stenson's brilliant bunker shot sets up a simple birdie at the par-5 16th and he's now just one off Phil Mickelson, who's currently in the clubhouse with a mug of Horlicks and a blanket over his knees.
13.25: HeyDJ! Yep, Dustin Johnson rattles in a third birdie on the bounce at 17 and he's -2 with just the 18th to play. But forget that, checkout another birdie for Sergio Garcia as he gets back the shot he lost at 12. Pathetic punch in the air to celebrate though. Proof that he can't even make a decent fist of making a decent fist.
13.18: Back at the first, US danger man Patrick Reed misses a birdie putt but the width of a nasal hair and has to settle for par. I've got a feeling Reed is going to do something special today, especially now the rain has gone and the course dries out. Watch this space.
13.13: It's a solid par at the final hole for the leader Phil Mickelson as he taps in for a 69. He's -10 for the tournament and with a total of 132 he now has the lowest 36-hole total for an Open at Royal Troon. Ernie Els, meanwhile, suffers another bogey to sink to +5 and it's very unlikely he'll be here for the weekend. The final player in the trio, England's Lee Westwood, pars the last and he's on +2, perilously close to missing the cut. That could go either way.
13.04: Graeme McDowell should get a new putting coach if he's that unhappy...
12.59: GMac's not happy. He's back in the clubhouse with a +4 total of 146 and he's not best pleased with the state of the greens at Royal Troon. 'Decidedly average' he calls them which, coincidentally, is exactly what I blame things on when my rounds go belly-up.
12.52: WEATHER ALERT!Shirts off chaps, it's stopped raining!
12.50: BEEF!!! What a shot at 18 from Andrew Johnston! He dumps his approach in the front bunker but then splashes out to less than a foot. That'll be a par for the big man and another round of 69. He's -4 for the tournament. Good workbig fella.
12.46: Super Henrik Stenson rolls in his sixth birdie of the day on 13 to close the gap on Phil Mickelson to just two shots. He's on his own in second now and looking the business, both professionally and sartorially. Meanwhile, Mickelson plays a peach of a bunker shot at 17 to give him an all but nailed on par putt. He's a genius around the greens. Very soft hands. Like me.
12.43: Good to see Tiger Woods keeping up with all the action from Troon...
12.40: FACT ME! Andrew Johnston can eat an entire cowin less than an hour.
12.35: BEEEEEEEF! Andrew Johnston's only gone and done it again! Another birdie - his third on the spin - and he's now -4 with just the last to play. I want him to win it.
12.32: My each-way bet, Sergio Garcia, is holding this together nicely. Just one birdie today but no bogeys. It's solid stuff from the Spaniard. If he can get to -6 or -7 he'll be right in this come the weekend. For the record, I have now been betting on Sergio Garcia in every major since 2001.
12.28: Altogether now... 'NA NA NA NA-NA-NA-NA, NA-NA-NA=NA KEEEEVIN!' Birdie for Kevin Na at the last and it's a 69 for the diminutive American. His playing partner Charl Schwartzel is one shot ahead of him on -4 after a stunning 66. He's right back in it.
12.27: Andrew Johnston: my kind of athlete...
12.24: The rain is really hammering down now so fair play to those hardy spectators that are sticking with it, rather than retiring to the safety of the bars. Fair play too to England's bearded behemoth Andrew Johnston who moves to -3 with back-t0-backbirdies at 15 and 16.
12.20: Things get ugly at the 15th where Phil Mickelson fails with his par putt from 15-feet to slip back to -10 and Ernie Els all but calls time on his chances of making the cut with a double bogey six. He's now +5 and almost certainly going to miss out on the weekend.
12.16: Scotland in the summer: bliss...
12.13: Adam Scott so nearly nicks a par at the 11th after that awful tee shot but his putt from 20-feet slides by on the right and it's a dropped shot for the Aussie. He'll take that though and no mistake.
12.06: CLUBHOUSE LEADER! And it's Denmark's Soren Kjeldsen who pars the 18th to finish with an excellent birdie-free 68 and a halfway total of 135. There won't be many better rounds today. Visors off to the great Dane.
12.03: Over at 11 and it's Adam Scott in all manner of mither as he ditches his tee shot perilously close to the wall near the train track. At first it seems his ball is lost but when they do find it, it's almost unplayable. But play it he does and somehow he manages to chop it out across the fairway and into the lighter rough on the other side of the fairway. That was a gamble but it might yet pay off.
12.00: Hello, good afternoon and welcome once more. I'm Gavin Newsham and I'll be carrying the blogging bag this afternoon. And you join me as tournament leader Phil Mickelson, in full survival gear, rolls in another pinpoint putt at the 14th to baga birdie two and extend his lead to a comfy four shots. This is done and dusted, isn't it?
11:53am: Now it's clear why Frenchman Sordet was so emotional on the opening tee. He must have had a seriously sleepness night - he only lives 500 yards from where the attacks happened in Nice last night. Surely after the night he and his family have had, sport takes a back seat.
11:50am: Quiet consistency from Kjeldsen, who has not dropped a shot this round. He grabs his third birdie of the round on the 17th. One to go and he's moved up to second.
11:32am: It's the first dropped shot of the championship for Lefty on the 12th. A bogey on the 12th and his lead shrinks by one to Martin Kaymer and Zach Johnson now in second. Six to go for Mickleson.
11:24am: Want to know more about the Americans' Royal Troon frat house?Jordan Spieth, Zach Johnson, Rickie Fowler, Justin Thomas, Justin Thomas and Jimmy Walker are all sharing a gafftogether. They've been watching movies, sleeping on sofas and generally behaving like American students (no beer pong though). Hope they've been watching National Lampoon's 'Animal House'.
11:16am: That was a little underdone from Beef. Triple bogey for the Londoner on the 11th.
11:09am: Sam Morgan has trawled t'interweb for you in a bid to prove that: "Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley are very, very, very good mates." Apparently.
11:07am:Splendid:
10:58am: Woof! Martin Kaymer nearly bags the second hole-in-one of the championship on the Postage Stamp.
10:55am: Mickelson moves through the front nine well, three birdies and 33 is just one shy of the 32 he posted yesterday. He's yet to drop a shot today after hitting par on the 10th. Eight to go.
10:51am: Beef update from Sam Morgan:
"Andrew 'Beef' Johnston is currently the leading home hope. He plays golf better than he drinks.
"Beef is four under overall through ten holes of his second round, good enough for a share of eighth spot, seven shots behind leader Mickelson."
10:37am: Watch out Mary Berry, Englishman Andy Sullivan has been baking this morning.
10:36am: Mark Irwin doesn't think it looks good for Ben Curtis:
"Not a great start for Americas Ben Curtis. Hes dropped ten shots in the first ten holes this morning, including a TEN on the par four third. Hes currently 16 over. Dont think hes going to make the cut."
10:33am: Here's one from our man (with a brolly)Sam Morgan:
"Look out, Phil Mickelson has got both gloves on on the ninth tee.
"Mickelson is a fan of wearing two waterproof gloves when playing over here to guard against the cold and wet.
"He is almost unique among the top players for doing so. The only other one of any fame is Tommy 'Two Gloves' Gainey.
"The rain is really starting to come down now but the expected winds are yet to fully materialise.
"Mickelson, now 11 under, will be loving this. If he can skip home in level par then he will feel pretty comfortable no one in the afternoon groups can catch him."
10:26am: Brolly watch: It's seriously going to rain at Troon. DJ, put on 'Return of the Mac'. This could hand Mickelson a big advantage over the chasers thanks to his early start.
10:23am: What's not to love about this shot on the 2nd from defending champ Zach Johnson?
10:15am: So here are the current standings. Look at the Scandinavians Henrik Stenson and Soren Kjeldsen - it's their sort of conditions in fairness.
10:11am: Mickleson moves another shot further into the lead with abirdie 3 on the 7th. Told you he was enjoying himself.
10:02am: Zach Johnson is off to a solid start. Two pars and a birdie so far early in his second round.
9:50am: Here's the latest Bubba Watson update:
9:34am: Agonising from Mickelson, just misses an eagle on the fourth, his expression is priceless. But he's clearly enjoying himself out there.
9:33am: WatchingLouis Oosthuizen's hole in one yesterday never gets old.
9:25am: Beef takes the brisket. Lovely putt from the Englishman putts for his third birdie in a row after two bogeys. He now moves on to the 6th on a good run.
9:16am: This from our man on the fairways Mark Irwin:
"The battle for the silver medal for the Opens best amateur isnt exactly intense.
"There are only two non-pros in the 156-man field this year and Italys Stefano Mazzoli, 20, is currently 11 over par after two bogies and two double bogies in the first seven holes this morning.
"Englands Scott Gregory hasnt started his second round but is already seven over par."
9:09am: Kjeldsen is now in second place through six, a second birdie and superb start from the Dane. He's now two shots behind Mickelson.
9:01am: Nice snap of that Els wedge out of the bunker. Skills.
8:55am: Par for Mickelson on the 2nd. Huge roar for Lefty as his putt drops into the hole.
8:50am: Italian stallion Francesco Molinari has jumped up the live leaderboard, he's -2 through the sixth.
8:47am: Andrew 'Beef' Johnston is out on the course. If we threaten him with more haggis, do you think he'll surge up the leaderboard?
8:39am: Soren Kjeldsen has just moved two places up on the live leaderboard on the fourth. The Dane is -1 so far today, but plenty more mileage to go. Mickelson saves par on the first after missing his long putt.
8:35am: Trouble for Ernie Els on the first as he finds a bunker, but he nearly makes a brilliant save, narrowly missing the hole straight out of the sand. Long putt for Mickelson...misses by a couple of feet.
8:30am: Officials at Royal Troon have the French 'Tricolors' at half mast as a gesture of support for Nice. Golf showing support for our neighbours across the Channel, who will host the 2018 Ryder Cup at Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines near Paris.
8:25am: Phil Mickelson tees off alongside Lee Westwood and Ernie Els. Low cloud and a bit of breeze. Lefty Spanks a drive down the fairway. Good start.
8:15am: A sobbing Clement Sordet has made a touching gesture for the victims of the terrible tragedy in Nice last night. The Frenchman is wearing a cap with 'Pray for Nice' pennedon to the brim and a black ribbon pinned on to his cap.
There won't be a single player or fan at Royal Troon or watching on telly that would criticise his gesture of support for 84 dead and many injured in southern France.
8:05am: Here's the leaderboard after the first round with players already out on the course.