After the first round of the Masters, LIV golfers had mixed results.

The jokes about LIV Golf League players being unable to compete for a green jacket this week because they are not professional golfers are nothing new to Patrick Reed, a former Masters champion. Only 54 holes are played in tournaments when playing serious golf.

The 2018 Masters champion, Reed, stated, “Last I checked, I was the one with the green jacket.”

Mixed results were seen by the 17 LIV Golf League competitors who competed in the 87th Masters’ opening round on Thursday at Augusta National Golf Club. With a 7-under 65, four-time major champion Brooks Koepka took a share of the first-round lead. Former Masters winners Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, and Reed were all one under par, while reigning Open Championship champion Cameron Smith was 2 under.

A few former major champions now competing in the LIV Golf League fared poorly. In addition to Bubba Watson, who has won the Masters twice, Bryson DeChambeau and Louis Oosthuizen each had scores of two over par.

Having missed the tournament the previous year, Mickelson said, “I get to play Augusta National in the Masters, and no matter what I shoot, this is an awesome day.” I simply want to take it all in and not put too much pressure on myself.

After 18 holes, Koepka, who finished second to Tiger Woods in the 2019 Masters, is tied with Norway’s Viktor Hovland and Spain’s Jon Rahm.

“It was pretty good,” said Koepka. “I love finishing with two birdies. Just hoping to ride that into tomorrow. Knowing how to putt and drive well, then building on those skills to put myself in contention with nine holes left on Sunday, is the whole point.

The 32-year-old Koepka might have wondered if he’d be in this situation again soon. In March 2021, Koepka tripped and dislocated his right kneecap while he was at home in Florida. He claimed he shattered the kneecap while attempting to pop it back into place. In addition, he tore the medial patellofemoral ligament, which connects the kneecap to the femur.

“My leg was out and sideways,” Koepka explained. “By the time I swung my foot back in, the kneecap had already broken and was tightly fastened due to my foot being turned out.” It went in much more easily.”

Koepka missed the cut at the 2021 Masters less than a month after having surgery. Last year, he also missed the weekend. He claimed that surgeons told him it would take 18 months for him to fully recover.

During the round, Koepka had eight birdies and one bogey. Last week, Koepka won the LIV tournament in Orlando, Florida.

Koepka was honest and said, “I don’t think I’ve found anything new.” “I simply believe that my health allows me to move as freely as I like. If your body won’t let you do the things you want to do, it’s frustrating, and you end up creating a lot of bad habits and then trying to work out of the unhealthiness, which takes time, and then you have to get out of those bad habits. Being able to escape is nice.

Three-time Augusta National champion Mickelson competed in the Masters last year, placing tied for second. In the first round, he had six birdies, including one on the par-5 second hole. Mickelson hit his driver again, this time off pine straw, after hooking his 336-yard drive into trees on the right. His second shot sailed across the fairway to the left, landing on a cart path. Mickelson made a birdie putt after a drop on a flop shot he hit from 76 yards out to 5 feet.

Mickelson explained that a double bogey on the par-4 11th and a bogey on the par-3 16th were the results of two poor swings.

I had the opportunity to shoot a low round today and I hit a lot of good shots, according to Mickelson. However, this is the issue I’ve been experiencing: I’ll take two swings. and lose four shots on 11 and 16. I just need to keep working on getting rid of it. In addition to making good shots and driving the ball well, I’m also having fun while playing, which helps me put up some respectable numbers.

Mickelson made 12 of 18 greens in regulation and 11 of 14 fairways.

The penalty for a mishit in a major championship is severe, so I just need to stay a little bit sharper on one or two swings, according to Mickelson. I just need to play well tomorrow, “I even didn’t shoot myself in the foot.”