More than 100 years later, golf returns to the Olympics with an unexpected leader

The first round of Olympic golf since 1904 delivered a hole in one, ill-timed clicks of the camera, some wildlife, a course record and lots of pars (and worse) from the U.S. foursome of Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler, Patrick Reed and Matt Kuchar.

Only Kuchar, who shot a two-under 69, was on the right side of par, and was six shots behind Australia’s Marcus Fraser.

No matter the struggle on this windswept day, the mood of the Americans remained as bright as the red forming the lowercase “usa” on their caps.

“I really wouldn’t trade this experience for anything right now,” Fowler said despite shooting a four-over 75, a better score than only two in the 60-player field. “Being here has been amazing. Obviously it kind of sucks not getting off to the start I wanted to, but we’re at the Olympics, the greatest sporting event in the world when you look at it in the grand scheme of things.”

The first-tee atmosphere did not have the same intensity as the Ryder Cup, but that was expected given the locale. Brazilians mainly reserve their adoration for soccer and volleyball.

Still, it was reported that 6,242 spectators attended the first round, and the crowd at the first tee was large and enthusiastic enough to give the players butterflies.

“The nerves don’t get me very many places,” Kuchar said. “Here was a little different.”

The players knew they were taking part in something larger than themselves — and bigger than their opening scores.

“One of the magical things about the Olympics,” observed Mike McCarley, president of the Golf Channel, “is that you know there are kids in this country or in India or Israel that will be exposed to golf who never would have been before.”

What they saw Thursday was a hole in one by Great Britain’s Justin Rose, who used a seven-iron to cover 189 yards on No. 4. Rose could not see the pin but knew from the reaction he would be buying drinks.

“This felt unique and different,” said Rose, who shot a 67. “It’s like we’re representing not just Team GB [Great Britain] but the nation as well.”

Indeed, it’s international competition — but every man for himself. There’s no team format, just four rounds of stroke play.

The world’s top four of Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy all took a pass. That bummed out organizers and golf fans but opened spots for other players.

Fraser is ranked 90th in the world and benefited from the absence of fellow Aussies Day, Adam Scott, Marc Leishman and Matt Jones.

“This is where I want to be,” Fraser said, a remark that described both his presence and his standing atop the leaderboard after setting the course record of 63.

There certainly were some Olympic oddities — including wildlife in the form of native rodents and birds.

“I imagine it’s funny for people in Brazil to hear us ogling something that’s normal to them,” Kuchar said. “Maybe they would come over and we’d say: ‘It’s a squirrel. We have plenty of those.’”

There are some other differences.

“There are phones clicking, cameras clicking, people moving,” said Belgium’s Thomas Pieters, who shot a four-under 67. “I mean, it’s new for them. You deal with it. It’s the Olympics. It’s special.”

Special meant players without headgear, such as Sergio Garcia, and all wearing outfits free of garish logos. Sweden’s Henrik Stenson displayed a plain white cap, elegant in its simplicity, and was tied for second at 66.

Draped in red, white and blue, Watson opened with a disappointing two-over 73, clearly missing the advice and camaraderie of regular caddie Ted Scott, whom Watson called his “best friend.”

Watson said Scott remained in the U.S. because he’s wary of medicine and did not want to take the recommended vaccinations. Plus he wanted to celebrate his kids’ birthdays.

So Watson was adrift Thursday. Yet he still smiled after the round.

“I want to smile the whole time,” he said. “A couple of nights, I wanted to cry just because golf is in the Olympics and for the first time in my life, I get to be the hero and play for our country.”

tgreenstein@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @TeddyGreenstein