Spieth establishes himself at the top of the betting

Bookmakers were struggling to identify a market leader on the eve of the Open Championship, with three 16-1 co-favourites on the board, but Jordan Spieth quickly established himself as the clear jolly once the first round started at Royal Birkdale.

Spieth, Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler were jostling for the status of top dog before the event – the tournament billed as the most open Open for years – but Spieth carded a five-under-par 65 on the opening morning to detach himself from his rivals.

Spieth’s driving was not particularly stable, but superb recovery shots and his trademark short-game wizardry meant he signed for a bogey-free scorecard.

Three birdies on the front nine and two on the back put the Texan in front until US Open champion Brooks Koepka tied the lead with a 65 of his own half an hour later.

Spieth was cut to 9-2, while Koepka, available at a stand-out 40-1 with Ladbrokes before the off, was slashed to 9-1. Koepka has not competed since his Major glory at Erin Hills a month ago, so the Floridian powerhouse will be thrilled with the way he shrugged off his rust.

Koepka’s only bogey of the round came at the 16th, but he bounced back immediately with an eagle at the 17th, holing from a greenside bunker. His best previous Open finish is the share of tenth place he achieved at St Andrews in 2015.

Spieth has made the cut in all four of his previous Open starts and finished fourth in the 2015 edition, one shot shy of the three-man playoff won by Zach Johnson.

A third American joined them at the top as 55-1 shot Matt Kuchar became the third player to shoot 65 on the opening day.

Two other big names made a solid start in the morning – defending champion Henrik Stenson fired a 69, while world number two Hideki Matsuyama needed one fewer shot, fighting back from one over par to two under.

At the same time, though, the home challenge faded fast. Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood were the English duo shortest in the ante-post betting at 22-1 and 25-1 respectively, but both failed to live up to the hype. Rose started well before making four bogeys on the back nine to finish one over.

Fleetwood, the Southport man carrying the local support, was the top liability of most layers before a ball was struck. But he could not provide his army of supporters with much to cheer. He did not card any birdies in a round of 76 and making the cut is a significant challenge from his position.

The Birkdale breeze was fairly consistent all day, but the afternoon starters faced a drier, slightly more difficult track, and plenty of household names found the challenge tough.

Rory McIlroy slumped to five over par through six holes before fighting back to finish one over, while Sergio Garcia did not make a birdie until the 17th hole. The Spaniard closed with back-to-back birdies, but a 73 left him needing Friday fireworks.

Jason Day recorded a 69 with a long birdie putt at the 18th, Adam Scott cruised to the same score as his fellow Aussie despite a cold putter, while the much-fancied Fowler bogeyed the final hole for a 71.

Paul Casey led the home charge with a 66, a score that was later matched by South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel.