GULLANE, Scotland, — Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen boosted his hopes of earning a last-gasp ticket to next week's British Open by grabbing the lead in the Scottish Open first round on Thursday.
The 25-year-old landed a birdie hat-trick from the 15th on the way to a flawless seven-under-par 63 that gave him a one-shot lead over Britain's Daniel Brooks in bright and breezy conditions.
Sharing third position on 65 were British trio Matthew Nixon, Richard Finch and Seve Benson, Spanish pair Alejandro Canizares and Adrian Otaegui, U.S. Ryder Cup player Jimmy Walker and Swede Johan Carlsson.
Olesen is looking to claim one of the three spots for St Andrews next week that are available to those not already exempt for golf's oldest major.