Former Masters Tournament champion Zach Johnson began The 142nd Open Championship in the same imperious style as he did the 141st.
The American carded a five under 66 to lead by one from Spain's Rafael Cabrera-Bello and 1998 champion Mark O'Meara, with 1996 winner Tom Lehman a shot behind alongside fellow Americans Dustin Johnson and Brandt Snedeker, Spain's Miguel Angel Jiménez and India's Shiv Kapur. Kapur held the lead when he raced to the turn in 30, but dropped three shots on the back nine.
World Number One Tiger Woods, seeking the 15th Major title of his career and a first since 2008, was ominously poised on two under, but US Open Champion Justin Rose's hopes of back-to-back Majors suffered a blow with a 75 and defending champion Ernie Els was only one shot better off.
Johnson, who opened with a 65 at Lytham 12 months ago and eventually finished ninth, stormed to the turn in 31 thanks to an eagle and three birdies and reached six under before his only bogey of the day on the 14th.
The 37 year old was beaten in a five-hole play-off by 19 year old Jordan Spieth at the John Deere Classic on Sunday and said: "I think this game demands resilience. If anything, what I've embraced from last week is the fact that I'm playing great and I can put that into play, and I'm certainly somewhat confident in what I'm doing, confident in my routines."
O’Meara, whose Open victory came at Royal Birkdale, will return to the venue next week to contest the Senior Open, when he hopes to be going for a unique double.
He said: "Do I think I can (win)? When I play like I did today, yeah, I think I can.
"I didn't feel like I was 56 years old out there, I felt like I was 32.
"I know I haven't won a lot in the last 10, 11 years of my career, but I've been close a lot.
"And I know that sometimes if you just keep getting close, sooner or later they're going to open the door."
Woods looked set for a long afternoon when he hooked his opening tee shot off a tree and into rough so deep that he played a provisional ball, but after the original was found he took a penalty drop and salvaged a bogey after finding a greenside bunker with his third.
Still one over at the turn, birdies at the tenth, 11th and 13th took him to two under par and a bogey on the 14th - where he putted from the front of the green off the back - was cancelled out by a two-putt birdie on the 17th.
Woods said: "It was tough. The golf course progressively got more dried out and more difficult as we played and I'm very pleased to shoot anything even par or better.”
