Lucas Bjerregaard's long driving leads to opening 70 in Masters

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Lucas Bjerregaard walks up to the second green during the first round of the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club, Thursday, April 11, 2019, in Augusta, Georgia. [MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]

Lucas Bjerregaard walked up the 18th fairway talking to Emiliano Grillo with a huge smile on his face.

At the time, Bjerregaard was tied for first place while playing his first round in the Masters Tournament. He then missed a 5-foot par putt on No. 18, finishing with 2-under-par 70, putting him in a tie for fourth.

“Happy obviously, but that short putt on 18 hurts a bit,” the Danish Masters rookie said. “Other than that, four and 18 were the only two little mistakes I made all day. Drove the ball nicely. Didn’t miss many fairways. It was pretty good.”

The 27-year-old was third in driving distance with an average of 322 yards, behind Brooks Koepka and Rory McIlroy. His long drives helped set him up on the par-5s, where he birdied three of four.

“Just drove it nice,” Bjerregaard said. “Had 7-iron into 13 and 6-iron into 15, which helps. We managed to get the wind right, which was nice. Those were two stress-free birdies with two putts.”

For Masters rookies, strolling around Augusta with five birdies and being in contention after their first round isn’t common. Bjerregaard said his caddie, who has experience winning the Masters, helped make things easier for him.

“I feel like I’ve done my homework,” Bjerregaard said. “I’ve watched this tournament on TV the last 15 years. I know a little bit from that, but my caddie Jonathan Smart won with (Danny) Willett here in 2016, so I’ve been relying on him quite a bit.”