When the Swedish star went out on TPC Southwind in eastern Memphis, USA, he had already warned that the introduction could be a bit shaky.
- It's exciting to be back, but we'll see how much rust there is to shake off in the first hours, days or months, he said to the PGA Tour's site before the round, and proved his thesis himself.
Two thirds into the premiere round he had not yet lowered a birdie and with two bogeys and the rest par he was far down in the results list. Stenson looked to be struggling not to slip too far behind the lead, but on the 14th hole he had gotten a little warm in his clothes.
There was a birdie on the short hole, and two holes later an eagle also came. The Swede put the second shot on the par five hole one and a half meters from the hole, and from there he had no problem putting the ball.
On the 17th, an eight-meter putt almost kept going into the hole for another shot under par, but Stenson had to settle for finishing the round with two straight pairs for a round of -1.
With that, he is in a split 27th place, seven strokes from the lead - but only two from a ninth place. After the first day's play, Brooks leads Koepka, two strokes ahead of Rickie Fowler and Brendon Todd. As the names gossip, large sections of the world elite are in place for this week's competition, the last before the PGA Championships in San Francisco next weekend.
The competition's second Swede, Sebastian Söderberg, went around in two strokes over par, and shares 58th place.