WGC-Mexico Championship 2017: Thursday Leaderboard Scores and Highlights

The PGA Tour is in Mexico City this week for the 2017 WGC-Mexico Championship, with Lee Westwood and Phil Mickelson the marquee names in a six-way tie for the lead at four-under par. 

This is only Westwood's second PGA Tour event of the season and his first since October. He has kept up with his game on the European Tour, finishing 26th at the Maybank Championship last month. 

Westwood and Mickelson are joined by Ross Fisher, Jimmy Walker, Jon Rahm and Ryan Moore atop the leaderboard. 

There's also a group of seven players, including Rory McIlroy, one shot off the lead at three-under par. 

Here's the full leaderboard after Thursday's opening round at the WGC-Mexico Championship:

Westwood's last tournament win of any kind came on the European Tour in 2014. He hasn't won on the PGA Tour since 2010, though he did tie for second at the Masters last year. 

Per Justin Ray of the Golf Channel, Westwood being in contention at an international tournament is hardly a surprise:

Westwood was able to extend his lead to two shots for a brief period of time with this excellent approach on his 16th hole that left him with an easy birdie putt, via PGA Tour:

Those good vibes would be washed away on the last two holes when Westwood missed a short par putt that forced him to take a bogey on No. 17 and another one on 18 that left his score at four-under par. 

Another veteran player who had an excellent start on Thursday was Mickelson. After an erratic start with three birdies and two bogeys on the front nine, Lefty settled down with three birdies on the back nine to card a 67. 

There was a moment on the 12th hole when Mickelson seemed destined for something over par before saving it with this brilliant shot from the trees, via PGA Tour:

This is Mickelson's second consecutive opening-round 67 on the PGA Tour, previously doing it at the Genesis Open two weeks ago. A 73 on Friday dropped him out of contention, so he will be looking for a better second round this time.

One of the most encouraging performances from Thursday's opening round was delivered by McIlroy. Playing in his first PGA Tour event of 2017 due to a stress fracture in his ribs, the four-time major champion is one shot off the lead.

Showing off some of his vintage form on No. 6 after starting on the back nine, McIlroy fired a perfect putt for an eagle that dropped his score to three-under par, via PGA Tour:

Because of the injury and long layoff, McIlroy just needed to get through the round without pain. Being able to put himself in contention right out of the gate is an added bonus and a stern message to the rest of the PGA Tour for what could be in store the rest of this season.

Per Ewan Murray of the Guardian, the news was not all good for McIlroy on this day:

It appears McIlroy's sickness didn't hinder his performance. 

After winning the Genesis Open two weeks ago to take over the No. 1 spot in the official world golf rankings, Dustin Johnson isn't going to be celebrating his effort Thursday. 

Johnson's total score of 70 isn't bad on the surface, but this stat from Ray illustrates how many strokes the 2016 U.S. Open champion left on the course:

The good news for Johnson is he was able to make enough putts to salvage an under-par round, and the rest of the field was unable to put him in the rearview mirror. His last two second-round scores in PGA Tour events were 69 at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am and 66 at the Genesis Open. 

Another strong Friday for Johnson will put him in the mix for a second consecutive title, though his putting will have to improve. 

Given the massive cluster atop the leaderboard after the first round, no one should feel safe about their current position heading into Friday. 

Post-Round Reaction

Following his first round of golf since January, McIlroy was very pleased with how things turned out on Thursday. 

“The rib is fine,” McIlroy told the Golf Channel (h/t Kyle Porter of CBS Sports). “It’s great actually, how it responded over the last couple of weeks ramping up the practice and then playing my first full competitive round today. I didn’t feel it at all. It’s all positive in that regard."

Among the leaders, Westwood discussed what the strategy is playing on the course in Mexico City. 

"It's a great golf course," Westwood said, via the Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com). "You've got to be really patient. It's a pleasure to play a golf course where your caddie doesn't hand you the driver walking off the previous green. You've got to put in a bit of thought on this golf course."