British Open viewer's guide

Keep Your Eyes On

Big Five Watch Goosen Mickelson Els Singh Woods If we were handing out report cards for the Big Five's opening round at St. Andrews, three would have marks they could hang on the fridge. The other two might want to hide them from their folks. Woods gets an A+ for his leading 6-under 66. Despite finding three bunkers -- three more than he saw during four rounds at the Old Course in 2000 -- Tiger still was able to make eight birdies against only two bogeys. Goosen and Singh left the course with solid A performances for their 68 and 69 scores, respectively. Goosen deserves special recognition for bouncing back from his final-round meltdown at Pinehurst. Now for the bad news. Els and Mickelson weren't awful, and they are by no means out of it, but they're pretty close. The third- and fourth-ranked players in the world shot 2-over 74 apiece. Els is in danger of his first Open finish outside of the top 20 since 1999. Featured Pairing Donald Watson Nicklaus 7:58 a.m. ET It's tough not to choose the Woods/Jose Maria Olazabal/Robert Allenby grouping, which played the opening round in a combined 12 under, but they'll be around all weekend. On the other hand, Friday is, perhaps, the final time we'll see Jack Nicklaus playing a competitive round in a major championship. He'll be flanked by fellow Royal Bank of Scotland-sponsored players Tom Watson and Luke Donald. He'll wave to the galleries. He'll shed some tears. He'll stop for photographs on Swilcan Bridge one final time. In between, he'll also hit a few golf shots. They're likely to be some pretty good ones, too. There's no one in the field who knows this course like Jack. If the wind starts whipping and the course plays tough, Nicklaus will have a few tricks up his sleeves; it's just a matter of whether he can execute the shots he's trying to attempt. There's no telling what the cut line will be Friday afternoon, but after Nicklaus' first-round 3-over 75, there's a good chance he will need to shoot 70 or better. It'll be fun watching him give it a go. Amateur Analysis Eric Ramsay is the unlikeliest of the 10 players who shot 68 to share third place, two strokes behind Woods. He's from Carnoustie, Scotland, and has played the Old Course "probably between 20, 25 rounds," but had never scored below 70 until Thursday. He has played in exactly one professional event on the Challenge Tour (Europe's equivalent of the Nationwide Tour), missing the cut. He's an amateur, but when asked his profession, Ramsay stated, "I just play golf. We get funded from the lottery for tournaments throughout the year. My mom and dad help me with the rest." Whew. This guy makes Jason Gore look as though he was a polished veteran at Pinehurst. If Ramsay continues this torrid play, you can be sure he'll become a fan favorite, just like Justin Rose at Royal Birkdale in 1998.

Mark Hensby is the rarest of birds in the nest of professional golfers at the British Open.

He is not an elite player like Retief Goosen, nor part of the crowded second tier like Luke Donald. He's not an up-and-comer like Trevor Immelman, a proven veteran like Scott Verplank or a total unknown like Tino Schuster.

His game doesn't own the low, cutting shots of Peter Lonard or the slick putting stroke of Chris Riley. He's hardly a huge money-winner, but isn't an amateur like Eric Ramsay. He has played Augusta National, but isn't a Masters champ like Jose Maria Olazabal. He has some fans, but is hardly a crowd favorite like Fred Couples.

Hensby is unlike any of them. Instead, he was better Thursday, leading each of those 10 players by one stroke through the first round at the Old Course, claiming sole possession of second place with a 5-under 67 that left him one shot behind Tiger Woods.

Like the warm ale in a St. Andrews pub, Hensby's play is surprising, yet not all that unexpected. He only played in his first major last year -- finishing T-68 at the PGA Championship -- but has come out like gangbusters in '05, with a T-5 at The Masters and a T-3 at the U.S. Open.

Not bad for a guy who turned down his first chance to play in a major championship.

That's right, Hensby had an opportunity to compete in last year's British Open, but declined. After claiming his first and, so far, only PGA Tour title at the John Deere Classic, he received an automatic exemption into the major, but said, "I've traveled all over the world, and I know it's just not that easy to climatize yourself, so it was really a no-brainer. … Obviously I could go and play, but I've never played over there. I've never played a course like that. I don't feel like I could get ready in one day for a tournament. It's a major, and it's a pretty tough test."

Hensby received plenty of criticism after that decision, but maybe the guy was onto something. After all, you can hardly be critical of his play in the year's first two majors. And given that success, there's a good chance we'll see a healthy dose of Hensby for the remaining three days of the Open.

Then everyone will know who Mark Hensby really is.

Riley must have gotten that rest he so badly needed on Saturday during last year's Ryder Cup. Having dropped to 93rd in the World Ranking, Riley looked well-rested in posting a 4-under 68 in the first round Thursday. He made five birdies and only one bogey in a rare successful round since September's international tournament. You'll remember that Riley teamed with buddy Woods to win their match in the morning, then begged off when captain Hal Sutton suggested he also play in the afternoon; Riley reportedly said he was tired and needed rest. Ironically, golf fans have gotten a respite from watching Riley this year, as he's suffering through his worst season since joining the PGA Tour full time in 1999. In 15 events, he has made the cut only six times, with a season best of T-18 at the Bob Hope back in January. He ranks 168th on the money list.

Last year, Ian Poulter was the subject of many photographs while wearing his trousers made from a Union Jack flag. On Thursday, the flamboyant Brit topped that. Poulter wore violet slacks designed by a contest winner that featured a likeness of the Claret Jug on the left leg and a list of Open Championship winners on the right.

You might want to check out Jim Furyk on Friday … because he likely won't be sticking around come the weekend. Furyk entered the tournament as the hottest golfer in the world, having won his previous start two weeks ago at the Western Open and finished as runner-up three other times since April. But you'd hardly know it by his play Thursday, when he carded two double-bogeys and two bogeys en route to a front-side 6-over 42 before finishing at 6-over 78. Disappointing performances are nothing new to Furyk, who has missed the cut in each of the last four British Opens. But that wasn't always the way for him on the links courses across the pond. From 1997 to '99, he finished in the top 10 three consecutive times at the year's third major.

The ferocious winds coming off St. Andrews Bay reared their ugly head only briefly during Thursday's first round, but don't expect the benign conditions to continue. After all, the British Open hasn't really started until the fog rolls in, the "breeze" curves the flagsticks and the rain starts coming sideways. The best part? It's totally unpredictable, but you know it's coming. And that's when the fun really begins.

Jason Sobel is ESPN.com's golf editor. He can be reached at Jason.Sobel@espn3.com.