Danny Willett may have been leading the home charge after day one of The 2021 Open Championship but the Englishman was glad just to be pain free at Royal St George's Golf Club.
This year has seen the 2016 Masters Tournament champion catch Covid-19, have a wisdom tooth removed and then undergo surgery for appendicitis and a hernia.
But the man from Sheffield lived up to his home city's steely reputation as he recovered from being one over after 11 holes to card a 67 and sit alongside countrymen Justin Rose, Jack Senior and Andy Sullivan.
“Playing for the first time pain free was delightful,” he said.
“The hernia healed up all right but they go in in three places and tore my obliques with one and that’s really been hurting.
It was joyous sneezing without it hurting for the first time on Saturday. That sounds stupid but that’s where I’ve been
“It was joyous sneezing without it hurting for the first time on Saturday. That sounds stupid but that’s where I’ve been.
"It was a good job we caught it so soon. I saw the doctor on the Sunday of Memorial. If we had left it, who knows?
“And who knows what else 2021 will bring? It might finish well. I hope so.”
Fellow Major Champion Rose kept a clean card as he too finished the day at three under and was delighted to get round blemish free.
"Playing 18 it wasn't lost on me that a bogey free round is pretty good around Royal St George's," he said. "It's a gnarly golf course.
"It's playing well this year, it's playing fair but there was definitely a nice breeze to challenge us all day long.
"So if you did hit a loose ball off the tee or you misclubbed with an iron, you were going to put yourself under pressure.
"I absorbed a lot of that pressure today in the sense of when I had a 40-50 foot putt from just off the edge of the green I managed to roll it up pretty close to the pin and not give myself too much stress out there until 18."
