Players need to play well to win the British Open, but a little luck of the draw also goes a long way in walking away with the Claret Jug. Weather conditions are a bigger factor at the British Open than most events and getting the right draw can be the difference between contending and even missing the cut.
With high winds expected for Friday afternoon, the general consensus is those playing in the morning on the second day will hold a significant advantage. That means a low score in the afternoon on Thursday could position a player perfectly heading into Friday. That is exactly where Zach Johnson is headed as he chases the lead late in the first round.
Johnson is 6-under through 15 holes in his first round. That is good enough for the best round of the afternoon wave and has him just one shot off the lead. Several players took advantage of favorable scoring conditions in the morning, but it's been tougher sledding in the afternoon as the course dries and becomes faster. That hasn't been an issue for Johnson, who racked up six birdies and is yet to drop a shot on his round. He still has to survive a difficult closing stretch, but if he can post a number near Dustin Johnson's clubhouse lead at 7-under, Johnson will be in ideal position when he steps to the No. 1 tee on Friday morning.
Justin Rose is also faring well in the afternoon and is 4-under on his round as he makes the turn. Rose hasn't had much success at The Open in recent years with only one top 25 finish and three missed cuts in the last five years. He did well to take advantage of easier scoring conditions on the front nine and is yet to make a bogey.
John Daly won the British Open at St. Andrews in 1995 and has recaptured some of that magic. He is 2-under through 16 and currently in the top 30. He's tied with several players at 2-under, including Phil Mickelson. The 2013 British Open champion has been a little up and down on his round, but has managed four birdies.
Rickie Fowler was one of the favorites heading into the tournament. He didn't get off to an ideal start, making the turn at 1-over after failing to make a birdie. He made up some ground quickly on No. 10, however, driving the green and drilling an eagle putt to drop to 1-under.
Here is a current look at the leaderboard. For a live leaderboard, head over to TheOpen.com.
| Place | Player | Score | Thru |
| 1 | Dustin Johnson | -7 | F |
| T2 | Robert Streb | -6 | F |
| T2 | Retief Goosen | -6 | F |
| T2 | Paul Lawrie | -6 | F |
| T2 | Jason Day | -6 | F |
| T2 | Zach Johnson | -6 | 15 |
| T7 | Jordan Niebrugge | -5 | F |
| T7 | Kevin Na | -5 | F |
| T7 | Charl Schwartzel | -5 | F |
| T7 | Jordan Spieth | -5 | F |
| T7 | Louis Oosthuizen | -5 | F |
| T7 | Danny Willett | -5 | 15 |
| T13 | Marc Warren | -4 | 16 |
| T13 | Greg Owen | -4 | F |
| T13 | Matt Jones | -4 | F |
| T13 | Luke Donald | -4 | F |
| T13 | David Howell | -4 | F |
| T13 | Justin Rose | -4 | 10 |
| T13 | Koumei Oda | -4 | 8 |
| T20 | Geoff Ogilvy | -3 | 14 |
| T20 | Tommy Fleetwood | -3 | 15 |
| T20 | Anirban Lahiri | -3 | 17 |
| T20 | Paul Dunne | -3 | F |
| T20 | David Lingmerth | -3 | F |
| T20 | Romain Langasque | -3 | F |
| T20 | Jimmy Walker | -3 | 11 |
| T20 | Ashley Chesters | -3 | 9 |
| T20 | Branden Grace | -3 | 9 |
| T29 | Steven Bowditch | -2 | F |
| T29 | Bernhard Langer | -2 | 13 |
| T29 | John Daly | -2 | 16 |
| T29 | Marcel Siem | -2 | F |
| T29 | Thomas Bjorn | -2 | F |
| T29 | Alexander Levy | -2 | F |
| T29 | Anthony Wall | -2 | F |
| T29 | Webb Simpson | -2 | F |
| T29 | Ollie Schniederjans | -2 | F |
| T29 | Sergio Garcia | -2 | F |
| T29 | Stewart Cink | -2 | F |
| T29 | Greg Chalmers | -2 | F |
| T29 | Tyrrell Hatton | -2 | F |
| T29 | Paul Kinnear | -2 | F |
| T29 | Hiroyuki Fujita | -2 | 13 |
| T29 | Marc Leishman | -2 | 8 |
| T29 | Romain Wattel | -2 | 7 |
| T29 | Harris English | -2 | 9 |
| T29 | Mark O'Meara | -2 | 14 |
| T29 | Scott Strange | -2 | 4 |
| T29 | Adam Scott | -2 | 11 |
| T29 | Martin Kaymer | -2 | 11 |
| T29 | Andy Sullivan | -2 | 9 |
| T29 | Phil Mickelson | -2 | 10 |
| T29 | Matt Kuchar | -2 | 11 |
| T29 | Jamie Donaldson | -2 | 11 |
| T29 | Bernd Wiesberger | -2 | 15 |
| T29 | Daniel Berger | -2 | 6 |
| T29 | Brett Rumford | -2 | 6 |
| T29 | James Morrison | -2 | 8 |
| T59 | Stephen Gallacher | -1 | 13 |
| T59 | Henrik Stenson | -1 | 11 |
| T59 | Rafael Cabrera Bello | -1 | 17 |
| T59 | Yuta Ikeda | -1 | 11 |
| T59 | Cameron Tringale | -1 | F |
| T59 | Graham DeLaet | -1 | F |
| T59 | Sandy Lyle | -1 | F |
| T59 | Ross Fisher | -1 | F |
| T59 | Ernie Els | -1 | F |
| T59 | Brendon Todd | -1 | F |
| T59 | Bubba Watson | -1 | F |
| T59 | Lee Westwood | -1 | F |
| T59 | Ryan Palmer | -1 | F |
| T59 | Kevin Kisner | -1 | F |
| T59 | Brooks Koepka | -1 | F |
| T59 | Scott Arnold | -1 | F |
| T59 | Padraig Harrington | -1 | 16 |
| T59 | Bill Haas | -1 | 14 |
| T59 | Jim Furyk | -1 | 9 |
| T59 | Paul Casey | -1 | 9 |
| T59 | Rikard Karlberg | -1 | 4 |
| T59 | Robert Dinwiddie | -1 | 4 |
| T59 | Pelle Edberg | -1 | 6 |
| T59 | Taichi Teshima | -1 | 4 |
| T59 | Edoardo Molinari | -1 | 7 |
| T59 | Mark Young | -1 | 6 |
| T59 | Rickie Fowler | -1 | 10 |
| T86 | Gunn Yang | E | 14 |
| T86 | Gary Woodland | E | 15 |
| T86 | Richie Ramsay | E | F |
| T86 | Charley Hoffman | E | F |
| T86 | Carl Pettersson | E | F |
| T86 | Hunter Mahan | E | F |
| T86 | John Senden | E | F |
| T86 | David Duval | E | F |
| T86 | Ryan Moore | E | 12 |
| T86 | Francesco Molinari | E | 14 |
| T86 | Ryan Fox | E | F |
| T86 | Russell Knox | E | F |
| T86 | Graeme McDowell | E | F |
| T86 | Patrick Reed | E | F |
| T86 | Hideki Matsuyama | E | F |
| T86 | Eddie Pepperell | E | F |
| T86 | Kiradech Aphibarnrat | E | 8 |
| T86 | Ben Taylor | E | 6 |
| T86 | Tom Gillis | E | 6 |
| T86 | Keegan Bradley | E | 11 |
| T106 | Tom Lehman | 1 | 13 |
| T106 | Jason Dufner | 1 | 16 |
| T106 | Danny Lee | 1 | F |
| T106 | Thongchai Jaidee | 1 | 15 |
| T106 | Morgan Hoffmann | 1 | F |
| T106 | David Lipsky | 1 | F |
| T106 | George Coetzee | 1 | 17 |
| T106 | Brian Harman | 1 | F |
| T106 | Matt Every | 1 | F |
| T106 | Shane Lowry | 1 | F |
| T106 | Billy Horschel | 1 | F |
| T106 | Brandt Snedeker | 1 | F |
| T106 | J.B. Holmes | 1 | F |
| T106 | Shinji Tomimura | 1 | F |
| T106 | Ian Poulter | 1 | F |
| T106 | Darren Clarke | 1 | F |
| T106 | Matteo Manassero | 1 | F |
| T106 | Marcus Fraser | 1 | 5 |
| T124 | Alister Balcombe | 2 | 4 |
| T124 | Ben Martin | 2 | F |
| T124 | Russell Henley | 2 | 14 |
| T124 | Scott Hend | 2 | F |
| T124 | Todd Hamilton | 2 | F |
| T124 | Joost Luiten | 2 | F |
| T124 | Byeong-Hun An | 2 | F |
| T124 | Victor Dubuisson | 2 | F |
| T124 | Ben Curtis | 2 | F |
| T124 | David Hearn | 2 | F |
| T124 | Jonathan Moore | 2 | F |
| T135 | Miguel Jimenez | 3 | 16 |
| T135 | Soren Kjeldsen | 3 | F |
| T135 | Thomas Aiken | 3 | F |
| T135 | Jonas Blixt | 3 | F |
| T135 | James Hahn | 3 | F |
| T135 | Tadahiro Takayama | 3 | F |
| T135 | Mikko Ilonen | 3 | F |
| T135 | Adam Bland | 3 | F |
| T143 | Justin Leonard | 4 | 13 |
| T143 | Pablo Larrazabal | 4 | F |
| T143 | Daniel Brooks | 4 | F |
| T143 | Tom Watson | 4 | F |
| T143 | Tiger Woods | 4 | F |
| T143 | Raphael Jacquelin | 4 | F |
| T149 | Rod Pampling | 5 | F |
| T149 | Gary Boyd | 5 | F |
| T151 | Nick Faldo | 6 | 10 |
| T151 | Kevin Streelman | 6 | F |
| T153 | Hiroshi Iwata | 7 | F |
| T153 | Jaco Van Zyl | 7 | F |
| T155 | WC Liang | 8 | 16 |
| T155 | Mark Calcavecchia | 8 | F |