Nine birdies helped Australian golfer Marcus Fraser to the first round lead on the Olympic Golf Course in Brazil on Thursday.
Fraser, 38, who plays on the European Tour and has never finished higher than 20th at a major, recorded just one bogey.
Canada’s Graham DeLaet and Sweden’s Henrik Stenson are tied for second at 5-under, while five golfers shot four under (including Great Britain’s Justin Rose, who rolled in this hole-in-one).
It was not a good round for Team USA, as Matt Kuchar’s 2-under was the best of the bunch and ties him for 11th. Patrick Reed shot 1-over and is tied for 34th, Bubba Watson shot 2-over for a 42nd place tie, and Rickie Fowler shot the third-worst round of the tournament at four over.
The French Open airs live on NBC Sports, Peacock and Tennis Channel through championship points at Roland Garros in Paris.
Tennis Channel has live daily coverage with NBC and Peacock coming back for the middle weekend, plus the men’s and women’s singles semifinals and finals.
All NBC TV coverage also streams on NBCSports.com/live and the NBC Sports app.
It’s the first French Open since 2004 without Rafael Nadal, the record 14-time champion who is out with a hip injury and hopes to return next year for a likely final time.
In his place, the favorites are top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic, who is tied with Nadal for the men’s record 22 Grand Slam singles titles.
No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland is favored to claim a third French Open title, a year after beating American Coco Gauff in the final. She bids to join Serena Williams and Justine Henin as the lone women to win the French Open three or more times since 2000.
Two Americans are ranked in the top six in the world — No. 3 Jessica Pegula and Gauff.
The last American to win a major singles title was Sofia Kenin at the 2020 Australian Open. The 11-major drought matches the longest in history (since 1877) for American men and women combined.
The French Open men’s singles draw is missing injured 14-time champion Rafael Nadal for the first time since 2004, leaving the Coupe des Mousquetaires ripe for the taking.
The tournament airs live on NBC Sports, Peacock and Tennis Channel through championship points in Paris.
Novak Djokovic is not only bidding for a third crown at Roland Garros, but also to lift a 23rd Grand Slam singles trophy to break his tie with Nadal for the most in men’s history.
But the No. 1 seed is Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, who won last year’s U.S. Open to become, at 19, the youngest man to win a major since Nadal’s first French Open title in 2005.
Now Alcaraz looks to become the second-youngest man to win at Roland Garros since 1989, after Nadal of course.
Alcaraz missed the Australian Open in January due to a right leg injury, but since went 30-3 with four titles. Notably, he has not faced Djokovic this year. They could meet in the semifinals.
Russian Daniil Medvedev, the No. 2 seed, was upset in the first round by 172nd-ranked Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild. It marked the first time a men’s top-two seed lost in the first round of any major since 2003 Wimbledon (Ivo Karlovic d. Lleyton Hewitt).
No. 9 Taylor Fritz, No. 12 Frances Tiafoe and No. 16 Tommy Paul are the highest-seeded Americans, all looking to become the first U.S. man to make the French Open quarterfinals since Andre Agassi in 2003. Since then, five different American men combined to make the fourth round on eight occasions.
