Scottish Open 2013 Leaderboard: Day 1 Scores, Analysis and More

John Parry posted an impressive eight-under 64 at the 2013 Scottish Open to take a one-stroke lead into the clubhouse after one round of play. 

Conditions were remarkably perfect at Castle Stuart Golf Links in Inverness, and the wealth of low scores reflects that. Englishman Simon Khan is alone in second at seven-under. 

Things get tighter from there. In all, there are nine golfers at six-under or better after the opening round.

That includes American Phil Mickelson, who is trying to use this tournament to bridge the gap between his painful runner-up finish at the U.S. Open and next week's British Open. 

The PGA took notice of Lefty's performance:

Take a look at the leaderboard, and then I'll recap some of the more noteworthy action from the opening day. 

2013 Scottish Open Round 1 Leaderboard

Full scoreboard can be found at EuropeanTour.com.  

Pos.	Golfer	Score
1	John Parry	-8
2	Simon Khan	-7
T3	Shane Lowry	-6
T3	Mikko Ilonen	-6
T3	Phil Mickelson	-6
T3	James Morrison	-6
T3	Kiradech Aphibarnrat	-6
T3	Thongchai Jaidee	-6
T3	Chris Doak	-6

John Parry Sets the Early Pace

Parry was nearly flawless in his opening round. He didn't suffer a single bogey while carding eight birdies. Five of those came on the front side, and that included carding a birdie on four of the first six holes. 

It was a nice turnaround for Parry from his recent level of play. His last time out, he finished 52nd in the Alstom Open de France, and he was 73rd at the Irish Open the week before that. However, he did post a solid 10th at the International Open in his start prior, and that came after an impressive 28th at the U.S. Open.  

Parry's strong start is a great sign for his chances at a title, but it would be a surprise if he could hold up this level of play for four rounds.

Phil Mickelson Shows off His Links Game

Starting on the back side, Mickelson got off to a very Phil-like start. In other words, he was inconsistent. He bogeyed his first hole of the day and then eagled the par-five 12th.

He then picked up birdies on 14, 16 and 18 but also had another bogey on No. 17.

The front side offered far smoother sailing for Mickelson. He carded three birdies and not a single bogey to give him his 66.

While this opening round leaves Mickelson right in the thick of the hunt for the title, make no mistake about it, Lefty is not here to win this event as much as he is to prepare for winning next week.

The Golf Channel highlights this:

Simon Khan's Steady Round Yields Big Results

Veteran golfer Khan put himself in excellent position at seven-under with a solid first day. 

Khan didn't suffer a single bogey on the day, and he moved away from the pack, looking up at Parry when he eagled the par-five 18th to move into second place by himself. 

Khan has had modest results in his career. However, he does have two European Tour wins to his credit, and he has a second-place finish at the BMW PGA Championship in May. So, he has the experience of winning and contending to fall back on.

With the way he is playing right now, he has a strong chance to add another victory to his resume.