{"id":597173,"date":"2026-04-10T04:41:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T04:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/597173\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T04:41:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T04:41:09","slug":"jason-day-stars-with-rory-mcilroy-bryson-decheambeau-flops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/597173\/","title":{"rendered":"Jason Day stars with Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeCheambeau flops"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australia\u2019s Jason Day made a hot start to The Masters, sitting two shots off the lead following his opening round, while Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau\u2019s fortunes went in opposite directions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Day fired a three-under par round of 69 to sit in the clubhouse alongside Patrick Reed and Kurt Kitayama as the closest rivals to leaders McIlroy and Sam Burns.<\/p>\n

\ufeffThe only place to watch the Masters Live & Exclusive is Fox Sports. Available on Kayo. | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Day charged up the leaderboard with three back nine birdies, including consecutive birdies at 12 and 13. <\/p>\n

The former runner-up breezed through the often daunting Amen Corner before producing a miraculous escape act with an eight-iron from the trees to save par on 14.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had 153 yards to the pin. Wind was in out of the left. We had about three to four yards of spin with another seven-ish yards of hurt. So we are just trying to hit a big high cut,\u201d Day told reporters at Augusta National.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes in those scenarios it\u2019s coming out of first cut, if you contact wrong with it, it can fly straight through and you don\u2019t get the cut. Just comes out like a flyer, so it was important to slice across it.\u201d<\/p>\n

LEADERBOARD: Scores from The Masters<\/a><\/p>\n

TALKING POINTS: Why brewing Masters bloodbath will suit Day; \u2018abysmal\u2019 LIV fail laid bare<\/a><\/p>\n

Jason Day reacts on the eighth green during the first round of the 2026 Masters.Source: AFP<\/p>\n

Day lauded his \u201creally good\u201d short game<\/a> pre-tournament, and it came up clutch on 17 and 18 as he drained crucial par putts to close out his round.<\/p>\n

\u201cDefinitely feels good when you hole those putts,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously shooting three under is always better than shooting two under or one under.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo I need to go to the range and work on some stuff. Need to make sure I\u2019m staying on top of my speed because I feel like the greens are only going to firm out and get faster.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, a host of the pre-tournament favourites made significant first round moves.<\/p>\n

Defending champion McIlroy\u2019s opening 67 ignited with back-to-back birdies to close out the front nine.<\/p>\n

The career grand slam winner then surged again with three straight birdies at 13, 14 and 15 to join Burns in a share of the lead at 5-under.<\/p>\n

READ MORE<\/p>\n

\u2018Pfftttt, no?\u2019: Bryson\u2019s bizarre clash with reporter over 3D-printed club after Masters disaster<\/a><\/p>\n

\ufeff\u2018Is this really happening?\u2019: Warren Smith\u2019s hole-by-hole diary of a dream 2025 round at Augusta<\/a><\/p>\n

Talking Pts: Aussie\u2019s classy Rory act revealed; major champ booted out in Masters crack down<\/a><\/p>\n

\ufeff\u2018No. This isn\u2019t some game\u2019: Rory never spoke to Bryson… except for this epic flashpoint<\/a><\/p>\n

\ufeffWalk, don\u2019t run: The comical 7am Masters moment that proves Augusta is \u2018Disneyland for adults\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Rory McIlroy reacts on the eighth green during the first round of the 2026 Masters.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great start. There\u2019s a long way to go. I\u2019m right in the tournament and it\u2019s a lot better than starting from seven behind going into the second round like I was last year,\u201d McIlroy told Sky Sports.<\/p>\n

\u201cGreat start, but can\u2019t get ahead of myself. There\u2019s a long way to go, but feeling good with where I\u2019m at.\u201d<\/p>\n

World No.1 Scottie Scheffler kick started his push for a third green jacket with an eagle at the par 5 second.<\/p>\n

He eventually signed off on a two-under par 70, placing him alongside fellow major champions Xander Schauffele, Justin Rose and Shane Lowry in a share of sixth.<\/p>\n

DeChambeau, meanwhile, has left himself in a battle to make the cut.<\/p>\n

The LIV Golf superstar ruined his round by taking three shots out of the greenside bunker on 11 on his way to a triple bogey seven – no player has ever won a green jacket after making a triple bogey.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bunker was softer than I anticipated,\u201d he told reporters post-round before engaging in a tense exchange over a 3D-printed 5-iron he is debuting this week<\/a>.<\/p>\n

DeChambeau eventually signed off on a four-over par 76.<\/p>\n

Bryson DeChambeau hits from the bunker on the 11th hole during the first round of the Masters.Source: AP<\/p>\n

Adam Scott was the next best of the Australian contingent.<\/p>\n

The 2013 champion opened with a rollercoaster even par 72.<\/p>\n

Scott made a stunning eagle at the par 5 13th to follow up a birdie at the 12th.<\/p>\n

The former world No.1 played the front nine in 38, so fought back strongly in the latter half of his round but a bogey at the last stopped him from ending the first round with a red number next to his name.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wish I would have finished under par today,\u201d the 45-year-old said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know why that one shot better feels like such a better accomplishment than even (par) but it does, the red number.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I\u2019m right there. I didn\u2019t shoot myself out of it. That\u2019s what majors are kind of all about sometimes. Then you look to take advantage of your good stuff the next few days.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adam Scott oand his caddie John Limanti walks on the 13th green during the first round of the 2026 Masters.Source: AFP<\/p>\n

Cameron Smith opened his tournament with a 74.<\/p>\n

The 2022 Open champion bogeyed his final two holes, but stressed to reporters: \u201cI\u2019m definitely not out of the tournament\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, a couple quick fives just like that,\u201d Smith said of 17 and 18. \u201cThis place can do it to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cI made a really kind of crappy bogey on 13. I was in a really good spot and made bogey which hurt a little bit. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut other than that, you know, I got the most out of my round [even though] I didn\u2019t feel that great. I did a good job hanging in there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Min Woo Lee endured a first round shocker.<\/p>\n

The top ranked Australian shot a six-over par 78, having made just one birdie for the day.<\/p>\n

Fun and games on Masters Eve | 02:46<\/p>\n

Lee\u2019s playing partner Fred Couples finished on the same number, but dared to pull off a miracle.<\/p>\n

The 66-year-old was showing up the youngsters for much of the day.<\/p>\n

But a brutal closing stretch of a quadruple bogey at 15 followed by double bogeys at 16 and 17 forced the 1992 champion to settle for a 78.<\/p>\n

Couples was not the only player to shoot a nine at the par 5 where McIlroy struck the shot of his life in last year\u2019s final round.<\/p>\n

Danny Willett, the 2016 champion, dumped two balls into the water, while European Ryder Cup Robert MacIntyre flipped the bird to the course after his second shot found the water that guards the forward sloping green.<\/p>\n

Augusta National showed its teeth in the opening round with ten players in the field of 91 shooting in the 80s to start the tournament.<\/p>\n

It was the most number of first round blowouts in almost two decades.<\/p>\n

AUSTRALIAN PLAYERS\u2019 GROUPS, SECOND ROUND (local time, AEST)<\/p>\n

8:38am\/10:38pm \u2014 Adam Scott, Daniel Berger, Brian Harman<\/p>\n

8:50am\/10:50pm \u2014 Fred Couples, Min Woo Lee, Fifa Laopakdee (a)<\/p>\n

12:32pm\/2:32am \u2014 Cameron Smith, Sam Burns, Jake Knapp<\/p>\n

12:56pm\/2:56am \u2014 Dustin Johnson, Shane Lowry, Jason Day<\/p>\n

FEATURED GROUPS, SECOND ROUND (local time, AEST)<\/p>\n

9:43am\/11:43pm \u2014 Jon Rahm, Chris Gotterup, Ludvig \u00c5berg<\/p>\n

9:55am\/11:55pm \u2014 Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, Brooks Koepka<\/p>\n

10:19am\/12:19am \u2014 Scottie Scheffler, Robert MacIntyre, Gary Woodland<\/p>\n

1:08pm\/3:08am \u2014 Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Akshay Bhatia<\/p>\n

1:20pm\/3:08am \u2014 Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele<\/p>\n

1:44pm\/3:44am \u2014 Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young, Mason Howell (a)<\/p>\n

Follow all The Masters action in our live blog below! Can\u2019t see it? Click here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australia\u2019s Jason Day made a hot start to The Masters, sitting two shots off the lead following his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":597174,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[5487,64,63,689,291463,3193,29743,68060,226619,291351,144061,755,290482,29981,290561,5499,291462,677,70796,265601,141795,756,35448,6945,85,34148],"class_list":{"0":"post-597173","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-golf","8":"tag-adam-scott","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-australia","11":"tag-australia-and-new-zealand","12":"tag-bunker-meltdown","13":"tag-cameron-smith","14":"tag-career-grand-slam","15":"tag-defending-champion","16":"tag-electric-start","17":"tag-epic-flashpoint","18":"tag-fast-start","19":"tag-golf","20":"tag-golf-expert","21":"tag-grand-slam-winner","22":"tag-hole-by-hole-diary","23":"tag-jason-day","24":"tag-live-ampampampampampamp-exclusive","25":"tag-oceania","26":"tag-patrick-reed","27":"tag-paul-gow","28":"tag-pre-tournament-favourites","29":"tag-rory-mcilroy","30":"tag-round-leaderboard","31":"tag-sam-burns","32":"tag-sports","33":"tag-warren-smith"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/597173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=597173"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/597173\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/597174"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=597173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=597173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=597173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}