Adam Scott: Aussie's Day 1 Dominance Isn't a Fluke

Adam Scott’s lead has nothing to do with luck.

The 32-year-old Australian golfer isn’t a household name on the PGA Tour, but he’s a legitimate competitor that won’t go away in the 2012 British Open. Expect Scott to not only remain around the top of the leaderboard throughout the tournament, but for him to make a run at The Claret Jug.

In Round 1, Scott shot a six-under tying the Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club record for the lowest score in The Open Championship there. He sits atop the leaderboard staring down at the likes of Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Luke Donald while Phil Mickelson and Lee Westwood are nowhere to be found.

The Associated Press reported that Scott talked about his day following its conclusion. He said (via Golf.com):

"

I'm very pleased with the start. It's nice just to take advantage of the calm conditions today. It was surprising but very pleasing to go out and play some solid golf. It's what I haven't done in the first rounds of the majors this year, and that was my goal here, starting the week, was to play today like it was Sunday and there was no tomorrow. I did a good job of that, and now I've got my work cut out for me the next couple of days to keep myself in a similar kind of position.

"

Scott has never won a major. He’s only won two PGA tournaments in the last four and a half years. According to Bovada, he had just 40-to-1 odds to win the British Open.

But it’s safe to say those odds have risen.

The No. 13 golfer in the world has failed to make the cut more times than not in major tournaments, but the last few years, he’s consistently competed.

At the 2011 Masters, Scott tied for second and in 2012, he tied for eighth. He finished seventh in the 2011 PGA Championship and a career best 15th in this past U.S. Open.

Scott has been close to breaking through for a while. This year it looks like he’s finally done it.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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