Scottish Open: Lee Westwood has huge round on Thursday

Lee Westwood had an outstanding day on Thursday at the Scottish Open. He’s hoping to win the event for the first time in 22 years.

It’s been 22 years since Lee Westwood won his first, and to this point only, title at the Scottish Open. But on Thursday, Westwood had an outstanding round and he holds the lead after 18 holes of play.

Westwood won the Scottish Open in 1998 by four shots. Then 25 years old, it appeared that the young talent would have many more titles ahead of him at the event.

More from European tour

• Davis Love III, Zach Johnson Reflect on What They Learned as Ryder Cup Captains
• DP World Tour Rookie McKibbin Forging His Own Path On Tour
• DP World Tour Fantasy Golf: Qatar Masters First Round Showdown Picks
• DP World Tour Fantasy Golf: Commercial Bank Qatar Masters DFS Picks
• Reflections on a Pilgrimage to the Home of Golf

However, as the years went by, there were no more titles for Westwood at Loch Lomond, Castle Stuart or any of the other venues where the event was played. However, he appears ready to change that, if Thursday’s round is any indication.

Westwood, now 47 years old, opened his round with a pair of pars. Then at the par-5 third hole, Westwood registered an eagle to get to 2-under par. After a par at the fourth hole, he birdied the fifth to get to 3-under on his round.

A par at the sixth hole followed before Westwood was able to take advantage of the other par-5 on the front side, the seventh hole. Again, Westwood eagled and he was suddenly 5-under through seven holes. He finished his front nine at that number.

On the back nine, Westwood was not able to take advantage of the par-5 10th hole, as he parred. He would also par the 11th hole, remaining at 5-under.

Then, Westwood got on a roll. He birdied the par-3 12th hole, then the par-4 13th, then the par-3 14th. At that point, he was 8-under par on his round.

He would par the 15th before his final birdie of the day, which came at the par-5 16th hole. He would finish with a 9-under par 62 and held a one-shot lead over Alexander Bjork when he finished.

Westwood already has one win on the European Tour this season. He claimed a two-stroke victory over Matthew Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood and Victor Perez at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in January.

Westwood continues to show that he’s got some game left. He’s currently fourth in the Race to Dubai standings and looking to improve that standing this week.

There are still three rounds of golf left this week, but Thursday was an outstanding start for Westwood. He would love nothing more than to win for the 26th time on the European Tour and for a second time at the Scottish Open.