Scheffler starts Open defense in the hunt at Royal Birkdale
ESPN’s live leaderboard had Scottie Scheffler two off the lead early as The Open’s first round unfolded at Royal Birkdale.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
2 min read
Scottie Scheffler’s Open title defense got rolling fast Thursday, with ESPN’s live leaderboard showing the world No. 1 at 2-under through three holes in the first round at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England.
That put Scheffler in a crowded early chase, two shots behind the leaders as play remained in progress at the 2026 Open Championship. ESPN listed Belgium’s Thomas Detry, England’s Alex Fitzpatrick and American Alex Smalley tied at the top at 3-under.
Detry was 3-under through 16 holes, Fitzpatrick had reached the same mark through 14, and Smalley was there through six, according to the leaderboard.
Scheffler arrived at Royal Birkdale as the defending champion after winning the 2025 Open at Royal Portrush Golf Club. ESPN reported that he finished that victory at 17-under and beat Harris English by four strokes.
ESPN also noted that Scheffler entered this week as the betting favorite to win The Open, even after his first missed cut in quite some time.
The early pack
The top of the board was tight, with several notable names already under par while the opening round continued.
ESPN’s leaderboard had Robert MacIntyre, Daniel Brown, Sungjae Im, Ben Griffin, Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau all tied for fourth at 2-under. MacIntyre was through 12 holes, Brown and Im through 11, Griffin through five, and Scheffler and DeChambeau through three.
A long group sat another shot back at 1-under. ESPN listed Joe Dean, Jordan Smith, Hennie du Plessis, Joakim Lagergren, Michael Thorbjornsen, Scott Vincent, Harris English, Akshay Bhatia, Russell Henley, Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatton and Nick Taylor in that tie.
Among players shown at even par were Andy Sullivan and Daniel Hillier through 16 holes, David Duval through 12 and Francesco Molinari through nine, according to ESPN.
Royal Birkdale takes center stage
The Open returned Thursday at Royal Birkdale, with ESPN listing the total purse at $17.75 million. The tournament coverage was listed for NBC, USA Network and Peacock.
The early leaderboard gave the first round a familiar star pull: Scheffler, DeChambeau, Hovland and Hatton were all inside the top 10 ties on the live board, while the leaders tried to make their first-day numbers stick.
ESPN also featured a pre-tournament video segment with Rory McIlroy discussing “fast starts” ahead of the championship, though the live scoring snapshot did not list McIlroy among the leaders shown.
With the first round still underway, the numbers were moving. The early message from Royal Birkdale was clear enough: Scheffler’s defense had begun in striking distance, and the top of The Open board was already packed.
This story draws on original reporting from ESPN.com.