Dane leads at Leopard Creek

Denmark's Morten Orum Madsen has taken a one-shot lead at the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek where he carded a 7-under 65 to set the pace.

Orum Madsen was crowned SA Open Champion just four days prior to this tournament where he drained eight birdies in the first round that featured only one drop shot.

He will start day two with a one-stroke advantage over South Africa's Allan Versfeld and Portugal's Ricardo Santos.

Versfeld carded an eagle and four birdies in a bogey-free round, while Santos finished with an eagle to add to four birdies.

''I have a lot of confidence right now,'' the Dane told reporters.

''I really believe I am going to hit good shots on pretty much every shot.''

"I wasn't expecting to go out and shoot 65 today. I knew I was playing well, so I wanted to put a decent round together.

"I won last week and I'm over the moon happy, so everything that happens this week is icing on the cake. I'm just trying to enjoy the ride."

Defending champion Charl Schwartzel was four off the pace following the 68 he carded on the day.

Schwartzel cruised to a 12 shot victory last year and would be very disappointed with his back-nine after he started the day with five birdies on his first six holes.

Meanwhile American John Daly shot a 72 for a tie for 48th in his second tournament back from right elbow surgery in July.

Daly made his return to golf at the BMW Masters in China last month after surgery to repair a damaged tendon in his elbow. He struggled for consistency Thursday with two bogeys and a birdie going out and two birdies and a bogey coming home.

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Rory McIlroy insists he is close to kind of form which saw him win two major titles

Rory McIlroy was delighted by his second round of 65 at the Australian Open which saw him close to within two shots of leader Adam Scott.

The two-time major champion admitted he had started to feel despondent during Thursday's opening round as he saw Scott disappearing into the distance on the back of a stunning course record 62 at the Royal Sydney Golf Club.

But, 24 hours later, it was McIlroy's turn to shine as he produced a joint best-of-the-day 65 to catapult himself into contention, making up five shots on the Australian.

"It would have been very easy for me to get frustrated yesterday, and I was a little frustrated, because I bogeyed 10 and 11 to go back to even par, and I'm thinking to myself, 'I'm 10 behind, not just 10 behind anyone, I'm 10 behind Scotty," McIlroy told reporters.

"When you see someone like that at the top of the leaderboard already with a low score, it's tough not to think about it. It's tough not to sort of press the issue... but golf tournaments are long and there's lots of time to chip away."

"You saw me in 2010 (at The Open), it can evaporate very quickly," added the Northern Irishman, referencing the 2010 Open Championship where he opened with a course record 63 at St Andrews, only to follow it with an 80.

For weeks McIlroy has been talking positively of his game and now believes he is very close the kind of form which saw him win no fewer than five times last season.

"I'm hitting the ball well off the tee and giving myself plenty of chances. It was good to see a few putts go in today," he continued. "As I've said for the last few weeks, the game is feeling much better and I'm much more comfortable now.

"It's the end of the season and I want to finish the season off well. It's a big tournament for me so, in terms of satisfaction, going out there and shooting a good score and putting myself in position for the weekend, yeah, I'm very happy.

"After not making the Tour Championship in the States, it was all about trying to build momentum for 2014 and that's what I feel I've started here.

"I think (my game) is just about in the same shape (as when he won his two majors)... it's all mental.

"When you get a run of events where you play well, your mindset going into tournaments is going under par, winning, getting onto the top of the leaderboard as soon as possible, and when you're not playing well, it's a bit different... if you're not playing well it's a bit different, you're hoping to do well, but not really expecting to."

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Australian Open: Adam Scott keeps Triple Crown dream alive

Adam Scott remains well-placed to complete the Australian Triple Crown although his lead at the top of the leaderboard in Sydney was cut to two shots.

Scott is aiming to add the Australian Open titles to the PGA and Masters crowns he has already claimed - with Robert Allenby, in 2005, the only other player to complete the feat.

Scott, though, faces stiff competition from Rory McIlroy, with the Northern Irishman carving his way through the field.

Scott had been the star performer in the opening round after a course record 62, however he found the scoring on Friday tougher as storms had an impact.

A mixed round, including seven birdies, three bogeys and a double bogey at the fourth, left the Masters champion to sign for second round 70.

And Scott, who is on 12-under for the tournament, will be casting an anxious look over his shoulder after McIlroy made his move to highlight his return to form.

"It was always going to be a day where you just had to hang on," Scott said.

"He (McIlroy) is one of the best players in the world so I'm going to have to bring my best game."

McIlroy, taking advantage of the calmer conditions early on, picked up nine birdies and two bogeys on his way to seven-under for the round - and 10-under overall.

"The weather wasn't as bad as we thought it was going to be and the wind didn't pick up," he said.

"So I knew we could take advantage of that, and the greens were a little bit softer as well."

Richard Green is a shot further back after his round off 66, while, Matthew Jones is on eight under.

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Denmark's Morten Orum Madsen is on course for back-to-back wins in South Africa

Denmark's Morten Orum Madsen is on course for back-to-back wins in South Africa after taking the lead in the first round of the Alfred Dunhill Championship.

Four days after winning his maiden European Tour title in the South African Open, the 25-year-old from Silkeborg carded a seven-under-par 65 at Leopard Creek to finish one ahead of local favourite Allan Versfeld and Portugal's Ricardo Santos.

Madsen carded eight birdies and one bogey as he continued his remarkable start to only his second full season on Tour, having finished 81st in last season's Race to Dubai.

Versfeld returned a flawless 66 thanks to an eagle and four birdies, while Santos did likewise and finished in style with his eagle coming on the signature par-five 18th.

Defending champion Charl Schwartzel was two shots further back on four-under alongside England's Richard Finch, Scotland's David Drysdale and France's Victor Riu.

"Today it seemed easy but it definitely wasn't, it was pretty tough out there and the course was playing long with the wind," Madsen said after his round.

"I played really solidly, I gave myself a lot of looks at birdie and a lot of shorter ones which was nice.

"I have a lot of confidence right now, I really believe I am going to hit good shots on pretty much every shot. I don't pull off all of them - I hit my tee shot on the seventh in the water - but the majority of them came off well and I rolled in some nice putts.

"I'm really, really happy with how I played, I heard it's tough to come out the week after you have won and play well but I felt pretty relaxed in the days leading up to the tournament and I just wanted to go out and see if I can put some solid shots together and I managed to do that today and put myself in a good position. Hopefully I can keep it up.

"I wasn't expecting to shoot 65 today, I knew I was playing well but I won last week so everything that happens this week or next week is going to be icing on the cake. I am just trying to enjoy the ride."

Schwartzel was five-under for his first six holes and annoyed at not capitalising on such a blistering start, declining to speak to reporters afterwards.

The former Masters champion won his first European Tour title at Leopard Creek in 2005 and triumphed by 12 shots last year, just a week after winning the Thailand Open by 11 strokes.

The 29-year-old has also finished second four times in what he unsurprisingly describes as his favourite event - an event in which he was a cumulative 81 under par before Thursday.

That total soon improved as Schwartzel started from the 10th with five birdies in his opening six holes, before a bogey on the 17th saw him reach the turn in 33.

A double-bogey on the first then dropped him back to just two-under par and revived painful memories of last week's South African Open, where he held a three-shot lead early in the final round, but ran up a triple-bogey six on the sixth and also took a double-bogey on the 10th.

The world number 21 did make three birdies in the last eight holes at Glendower to finish joint fourth and also responded quickly here, holing from 12 feet for a birdie on the second and from around 50 feet for another on the par-three seventh.

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Inconsistency leaves Rory feeling blue

Rory McIlroy is driving as well as ever but his putting let him down on Thursday when he ended the first round of the Australian Open seven shots behind leader Adam Scott after shooting a three-under-par 69.

The world No 6's problems since changing his equipment this year have been well documented and he arrived at the Royal Sydney Golf Club this week still searching for his first title of 2013.

After Scott's brilliant round, McIlroy's chances of success in Australia already appear remote and the Northern Irishman was left ruing four missed short putts that could have made a huge difference to his score.

"Missed three or four short ones out there," he told reporters after signing for his card.

"Wasteful, yeah. I felt it could have been a lot lower. Off the tee, I'm driving the ball the best I ever have, it's just a matter of being more efficient and scoring better.

"That's really it. I only played the par-fives at one-under and the way I'm driving it, I should be playing those at four-under."

A missed birdie putt at the seventh and three-putt from the edge of the green at the 16th were the most obvious wasted opportunities, while a pair of bogeys shortly after the turn halted his momentum after a solid front nine.

INCREDIBLE YEAR

"I got the most out of it, especially after bogeys on 10 and 11, so to get in the 60s was decent," he added.

"It was nice to finish with a birdie at the last, makes up a little bit for not making birdie at 16."

McIlroy felt conditions may have been a little trickier for the late starters after US Masters champion Scott had posted his record-breaking 10-under-par 62 in the morning.

"The wind might have got up for us a little bit this afternoon but still 62 on that course is great going," McIlroy added.

"When I was sitting over breakfast, I saw he'd birdied the first six holes and thought, 'oh nice'."

Scott has had an incredible year, following up his Augusta triumph with a win at the Barclays and claiming the Australian PGA and Masters title before helping Jason Day win the World Cup of Golf for his country last weekend.

For McIlroy, it was a reminder of his 2012 season when he became world No 1 and won the US PGA and a string of other tournaments.

"He's doing what I did last year and (world No 3 Henrik) Stenson's doing the same thing," the 24-year-old said.

"I've been in that position before, I know what it's like. That's what I'm trying to get back to."

LEADING SCORES

62 - Adam Scott (AUS) (new course record)

65 - Ryan Yip (CAN), John Young Kim, (USA)

66 - David McKenzie (AUS)

67 - Jason Norris (AUS), Aaron Bradley (AUS), Jason Scrivener (AUS), Alistair Presnell (AUS)

68 - Scott Laycock (AUS), Steven Bowditch (AUS), Brady Watt (AUS), Anthony Brown (AUS), Matthew Jones (AUS), Steven Jones (AUS), Max McCardle (AUS)

69 - Nathan Holman (AUS), Rory McIlroy (NIR), Tom Bond (AUS), Adam Bland (AUS), Kalem Richardson (AUS), Richard Green (AUS), Josh Younger (AUS)

SELECTED OTHERS:

70 - Jason Day (AUS)

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Scott fires course record at Aus Open

Adam Scott shot a course record 10-under-par 62 in the first round of the Australian Open at Royal Sydney on Thursday but the world No 2 was left ruing a mid-round dip that prevented him from posting an even lower score.

Scott has been on fire on a valedictory tour of his homeland over the last few weeks, winning both the Australian PGA and Masters, and helping his country to hoist the World Cup of Golf in Melbourne last weekend.

The 33-year-old showed no sign of slowing down as he started his fourth event at the Royal Sydney Golf Course on Thursday, grabbing birdies on his first six holes, parring the middle eight and then picking up four shots on his final four holes.

The first streak of birdies had the US Masters champion contemplating the possibility that he might be about to join an even more select group of golfers, those who have shot rounds of 59 in professional tournaments.

"I wasn't thinking about it hard but I knew it was a possibility. Having birdied the six holes I birdied, I felt like all the opportunities were still to come," he said.

"So if I kept it going, and I had a good run around the turn, I felt it was on for sure."

It was not to be, though, and from his seventh hole - the 16th - Scott felt his swing desert him and was soon battling his frustration at being unable to continue his charge.

"It was a beautiful day for golf, I came out hitting great shots and didn't have much work to do to clean them up in the first five holes and had a nice putt on my sixth hole and I was really rolling at that stage," he said.

MOOD SWINGS

"But I think I've gone through a rollercoaster of emotion out there today from cruising after six holes to having to work pretty hard.

"Nothing much was going my way, I missed a green, felt like my swing was leaving me again, it's just amazing how in 18 holes you can do a 360 degrees of emotion and mood swings and everything."

Despite his success of the last few weeks, perfectionist Scott said he felt his swing had not been quite "in the slot" and revealed he had discussed his "sloppy" posture on the phone with his coach Brad Malone.

"It's a bit hard work for me at the moment," he said. "I still hit some great shots but a few average ones as well. But I got away with the bad ones today with some good saves."

It was all relative of course, and he continued to nail the four to five foot putts that punctuated his round before catching fire again at the sixth hole, his 15th.

Scott said the strong finish was essential to avoid wasting the opportunity his brilliant start had opened up, but part of him was still left contemplating how low he might have gone.

"I'm thinking about what today could have been, if I was really striking it and lost opportunities," he said.

Scott nevertheless said it had been one of the "best rounds" of his career, along with the round of 61 he hit to win the Qatar Masters in 2008 and a 62 he shot at the Memorial at Muirfield Village in 2007.

Thursday's round not only gave him a healthy early lead but also beat the course record of 65 held since the 2008 Australian Open by Stephen Dartnall, Matt Goggins, Ewan Porter, Chris Gaunt and Jason Norris.

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McIlroy sympathises with Trott

Rory McIlroy believes more players will suffer from stress-related conditions in future as the pressure in top-level sport continues to increase.

England cricketer Trott earlier this week left the country's squad currently on Tour in Australia in a bid to facilitate his recovery from a stress-related illness, and McIlroy, having struggled for form throughout 2013, can relate to the South African-born player's plight.

"As sport becomes so big it's becoming more common that these sorts of stress-related illnesses are happening," McIlroy told the BBC on Wednesday.

"It's sad to see something like that happen and it just shows what a mental toll sport can take on you sometimes.

"Hopefully he gets home and spends some time with his family and recovers and can come back."

Following his winless run in 2013, McIlroy has slipped down to number six in the latest world rankings, having started the year as the world's top ranked player.

His best finish this year was a second place at the Texas Open, and only a top 10 finish at the US PGA Championship added some gloss to an otherwise disappointing year.

"It's been a long year, I guess mentally more than physically," the 24-year-old continued.

"Physically, golf doesn't take that much out of you but mentally it's quite draining, especially this year for me.

"It's not just the golf and being frustrated with my game, but having to answer the questions and having to come up with reasons why I'm not playing well and all that stuff."

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Scott cards course record

Adam Scott carded a 10-under par 62 to claim a three-shot lead after the first round of the Australian Open on Thursday.

The Masters champion birdied the first six holes of his round en route to a new course record, smashing the previous record at Royal Sydney that was shared by Chris Gaunt, Matt Goggin, Stephen Dartnall, Ewan Porter and Jason Norris, by three shots.

After the opening six birdies, Scott scored pars on the next eight, before closing with four more successive birdies.

The round of 62 handed Scott and excellent opportunity to win all three majors on the Australian Tour in the same year, a feat only managed previously by Robert Allenby in 2005. The 33-year-old has already won the Australian Masters and PGA Championship this year.

"The longest putt I had on those opening birdies was about five feet," Scott said.

"I hit a lot of quality shots right out of the blocks this morning.

"I'm off to a good start, but a lot of work to do yet.

It's been a long time since I shot a low round like this. It's a tough setup but it was a perfect morning for it."

Three shots behind Scott after a round of 65 is unheralded Canadian player Ryan Yip, with Australia's David McKenzie another stroke further back on six-under after his round of 66.

Aaron Baddeley carded a 67 and is in a tie for fourth place alongside two more Australians, Jason Norris and Jason Scrivener, while a group of six players are tied on four-under.

Former world number one Rory McIlroy, still looking for his first win of 2013, had to settle for a three-under par 69.

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