Daniel Young uses Fairmont St Andrews for winter golf, so the benign conditions on the cliffside above the Home of Golf were easy meat to him.
The Perth professional is based at Kingbarns but is a frequent visitor up the road when he’s wintering from his Challenge Tour campaigns.
Now 30, is playing in the Hero Open for the third year in succession and opened with an impressive 68 to lie just three behind early leader Ross Fisher.
‘It’s quite handy for me’
How it stands 📈#HeroOpen
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“I do know it very well,” he said. “I play it quite a bit in the winter, because they don’t use mats and they keep the back tees all year round.
“It’s quite handy for me, and it’s obviously a tour standard golf course. It plays pretty long in the winter, so it’s pretty good to give an idea where you’re game’s at. It’s a good workout.”
Rarely is it as calm as it was on Thursday morning, with some gusts for the early holes but still and calm thereafter.
“For up here, it is pretty benign today,” added Danny. “It’s pretty scoreable conditions, the greens are perfect and it’s quite soft out there. I would imagine there’ll be some low scores this weekend.”
Young’s form has been solid “without being spectacular”, and when the opportunity game to come off the Challenge Tour to the main tour for a week, he jumped at it.
“I was always going to play if I got in because it’s dual ranking points with the Challenge Tour and I won’t miss anything,” he added. “I’ve played in this event for the last two years and made the cut both times.
“I know the course, I like it here, and I’m in my own bed as well. It’s a good week, a bit of a different atmosphere than we have on the Challenge Tour.”
‘There’s no reason why we can’t have another Scottish winner’
Watch how @grantforrest93 claimed his first Tour title as last years Hero Open.#HeroOpen pic.twitter.com/z6sVoeG1le
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Having had the chance, he’s looking to make the most of it.
“The game’s been really good the last couple of months but I’ve just not had the putter going,” he said. “Funnily enough the putter was on today and the rest of the game wasn’t quite where it’s been.
“But I hit it in the right spots. It wasn’t the prettiest ball striking round I’ve ever had but I made a few putts. I made the birdies on the par fives where you have to, and just pretty solid all round.
“I’m here to compete, I feel my game’s in good enough shape. When you see the Scottish guys out on tour doing so well, Grant (Forrest) won last year, Richie (Ramsay) last weekend, there’s no reason why we can’t have another Scottish winner this week.”
Forrest and Ramsay also had 68s, while Craig Howie and Banchory’s Sam Locke shot three-under 69s.
The early leader is the former Ryder Cup player Fisher, who bounced back from a double bogey six at the second for a seven-under 65.