British Open 2018 Leaderboard: Updating Results and Standings for Thursday

The 2018 British Open is underway, and America's Kevin Kisner is the early leader after shooting a five-under par 66 on his opening round on Thursday at Carnoustie Golf Links in Angus, Scotland.

Kisner took advantage of the dry and fast conditions, as he hit an eagle and four birdies to seal a brilliant start to the tournament.

South African duo Erik van Rooyen and Zander Lombard and America's Tony Finau are both one shot further back at four-under par

Defending champion Jordan Spieth started well and was three under after 11 holes. However, he dropped four shots at the final four holes to finish the day with a one-over 72, six behind Kisner.

Dustin Johnson also found it tough going as he shot a 76 to finish five over par. The American was the favourite going into the tournament but has plenty of work to do after his opening round.

Here's a look at the early standings:

Kevin Kisner

Kisner put in his best ever round at The Open, managing to tame the notorious Carnoustie course. The American started steadily, but a bogey and an eagle at the fifth and sixth kickstarted his round.

The Golf Channel showed him in action:

He managed three more birdies on the back nine to move five under, and he kept his nerve to par the final three holes.

Kisner offered his view on his round and his approach to the sixth hole, per Today’s Golfer.

"I was 1-over going into the hole," Kisner said. "Hit a great drive and a 3 iron and holed a long putt, which was kind of the theme of the day. It jump-started the round and continued to make birdies and finished it off with really nice pars on the last three."

Very little was expected from Kisner before the tournament, but he'll be hoping he can maintain his early form and challenge for the Claret Jug.

Jordan Spieth

Spieth looked in good form early on with a birdie at the second and the fourth. He also made some impressive par saves during his opening round.

He added another birdie at the 11th in superb style despite finding the rough. A neat chip on to the green still left him with work to do, but his putting did not let him down.

However, a double-bogey at the 15th and more dropped shots at the 16th and 18th proved costly for the defending champion.

Mike McAllister of the PGA Tour showed Spieth's reaction to the 15th:

World No. 3 Justin Rose played alongside Spieth and also finished on 72 after struggling midway through his round.

Rory McIlroy

Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

Former British Open champion Rory McIlroy carded a 69 on his opening round, which leaves him two under par. 

He picked up his first birdie at the third but was undone by a bogey at the fifth. He fared better on the back nine, as he picked up two more birdies at Nos. 12 and 14.

He had chances for more too but was let down by his putting. He missed opportunities at the 13th and the 18th to sit three shots behind Kisner.

It's a solid start from McIlroy, who will not be too unhappy with his display on Thursday, although he may well feel it could have been even better.