Australian Open golf 2025 day 1: Live scores, leaderboard and updates from Royal Melbourne
Aussie Elvis Smylie has tamed some tough conditions to share the lead going into the second round of the Australian Open, while Rory McIlroy endured a rollercoaster day.
From “young boy” to being the man leading the Australian Open, the evolution of Elvis Smylie took another gigantic step at Royal Melbourne on Thursday.
The 23-year-old left-hander has a share of the lead going into the second round after he tamed some seriously blustery conditions which tested the patience of many including Masters champion Rory McIlroy.
After three-putting the 10th – his first hole of the day – Smylie went blemish-free and produced seven birdies on his way to an impressive 65 which was later in the day equalled by New Zealand’s Ryan Fox and Mexican Carlos Ortiz.
Smylie’s good friend Min Woo Lee, who shares the same coach Perth-based Ritchie Smith, was pumped for the rising star who has developed rapidly over the past two years.
“He’s been playing great, it’s been a good journey,” Lee said. “We have the same coach so we get to practise together and play together and I think he’s come a long way.
“He is becoming a bit of a man, I would say. He was just a young boy a couple of years ago, so he is progressing nicely and it’s good to see him up on the leaderboard.”
Smylie was certainly embracing being the one to catch and “the man” at the top of the leaderboard.
“I embrace days like today,” he said about being seven shots ahead of McIlroy. “I think I belong, I know that and I believe that so I’m just happy that I’m able to showcase that on a stage like this one.”
The son of former Australian tennis player Liz had his career breakthrough last year at the Australian PGA where he defeated fellow Queenslander and 2022 British Open winner Cameron Smith.
The victory secured him a DP World Tour card and allowed him to ply his trade all around the globe in 2025. He qualified for the season-ending DP World Tour playoffs after finishing inside the top 50.
On Thursday he looked more than comfortable playing alongside Smith and 2016 Masters champion Danny Willett in the group behind McIlroy, Lee and former champion Adam Scott.
“I think it just goes to show how much I’ve learned over on the European tour, the DP World Tour that is. I think week in, week out you’re always adjusting, adapting,” Smylie said.
“The courses are so different, the climates are so different. So I think you’re constantly adding tools to your toolbox and you’re playing against some of the best players in the world over there.
“And I’ve played around Royal Melbourne a lot of times before, so especially in this northerly breeze, which is quite a tricky breeze to play in, I felt like I navigated it quite well.”
Smith jumped out of the gates early, putting behind his horror form slump to race to a share of the early lead with three birdies inside eight holes but faltered on the way home with back-to-back bogeys leaving him at one-under.
“I felt better, just probably fixed a bit of tempo stuff up with my putting,” he said. “That’s been really good, particularly with the shorter stuff so I feel like I did pretty good today.
“I feel like I played pretty solid, made all the putts I was supposed to make and probably left a couple out there.”
Fellow drawcards Lee and Scott both had their moments and will start Friday in striking distance at two-under with Warrnambool’s Marc Leishman a further shot back while his LIV teammate Lucas Herbert copped the worst of the afternoon conditions, struggling to four-over par.
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Originally published as Australian Open golf 2025 day 1: Live scores, leaderboard and updates from Royal Melbourne
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