PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — If Scottie Scheffler knows anything about Sadom Kaewkanjana, it is likely due to the most random of coincidences.
Aside from their names being next to each other on the British Open leaderboard, there’s not much else they have in common, given Scheffler’s stature and Kaewkanjana’s relatively low stature.
Scheffler did what he does on Thursday during the first round of the Open at Royal Portrush. He hung around. Made a birdie late. And finds himself one shot off the lead.
Kaewkanjana is playing in just his second major championship, so excuse the golf world if he is not well known. From Bangkok, Thailand, he competes on the Asian Tour and is an ordained monk. He’s ranked 262nd in the Official World Golf Ranking.
“My goal is like I wanted to play in the Masters my whole life,” he said. “I want to play one time. So to get in the world ranking into the top 50, that’s my goal.”
He’s got some work to do, but a top-four finish here would also take care of that goal.
His round of 68 that matched the No. 1-ranked player in the world left them just a shot out of the lead.
Kaewkanjana is in the Open due to his victory in May at the Kolon Korean Open, an Open Qualifying Series event on the Asian Tour.
Scheffler is here because, well ... he’s a three-time major winner and will be exempt in all of them for the foreseeable future.
“I actually thought I drove it pretty good,” said Scheffler, when it was pointed out that he hit just three of 14 fairways. “I don’t know what you guys are seeing. When it’s raining sideways it’s actually, believe it or not, not that easy to get the ball in the fairway. Thank you guys all for pointing that out.
“But yeah, 3 under par. Felt like I hit the ball nice off the tee, and really only had one swing I wasn’t too happy with on maybe the 2nd hole, but outside of that, I felt like I hit a lot of good tee shots, hit the ball really solid, so definitely a good bit of confidence for the next couple rounds.”
Scheffler, who has won three times this year on the PGA Tour including the PGA Championship, is playing in just his fifth Open, with two previous top-5 finishes. Although his links golf experience is small, he appears to have adapted just fine.
It is sort of in keeping with his entire game which seems to travel no matter the tournament or venue.
Denmark’s Jacob Skov Olesen, playing in the fourth group that began at 7:08 a.m. local time, set the early pace with a 4-under-par 67 that included a bogey at the final hole.
The reigning British Amateur champion, he gave up his spot in the Masters and the Open to turn pro earlier this year and made it into the field via final qualifying.
He was tied by China’s Haotong Li and 2022 U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick at 4 under on a crowded leaderboard that had trouble separating due to wildly varying weather conditions.
“The weather here is the craziest weather pattern I’ve ever experienced in my life,” said Jason Day, who shot 73. “There’s no consistency to it whatsoever. You look at the weather—I mean, I’d love to be a weatherman here. You just get it wrong all the time.
“Other than that, I really enjoyed playing golf.”
Scheffler said he dealt with on and off rain for more than half his round.
“Wind is something that obviously makes links golf challenging, but the rain adds a whole new element to it, especially when you’re hitting the tee balls,” Scheffler said. “You get a little moisture between the club face and the ball, especially with the longer clubs and the woods, and it can be pretty challenging.”
There is a good chance he will have more of that to deal with in the coming days.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Scottie Scheffler Starts Solidly in the Unpredictable British Open Elements.