Andy DevaneyCameron Percy leads the ISPS HANDA Senior Open by one shot after four consecutive birdies around the turn transformed his opening round on the King’s Course at The Gleneagles Hotel. The Australian reached seven under to move ahead of Lionel Alexandre, with Ernie Els and Miguel Ángel Jiménez among a formidable group giving chase.
Calm early conditions offered scoring opportunities, but Gleneagles was hardly handing out birdies with the morning coffee. Percy still had to put the ball in the correct places, avoid the rough and persuade a few putts to behave themselves. He managed all three.
How Cameron Percy Led the ISPS HANDA Senior Open
Percy holds the first-round lead at seven under, one shot ahead of France’s Lionel Alexandre. Four birdies from the ninth hole supplied the decisive acceleration, while further gains at the driveable 14th and closing hole helped Percy recover immediately from his only bogey of the round.
The 51-year-old began with birdies at the second and third before his round properly caught fire around the turn. Starting at the ninth, Percy collected four gains in succession and rose rapidly through a leaderboard crowded with Major champions and established senior competitors.
His only dropped shot came at the 13th. It did not linger long enough to become troublesome.
Percy responded by birdieing the driveable par-four 14th and finished with another gain at the last, converting a promising morning into the outright lead.
The method was refreshingly uncomplicated: drive accurately, attack from sensible positions and take advantage of the shorter holes.
Percy said: I drove it really good but you have to here. I didn’t hit in the rough once and so that was really nice. Seemed to have really good numbers, and I stopped pretty close to the hole and made a couple putts. The par fives, I drove on in two and the short par four I drove, and that helped.
That clean driving performance mattered on a course where a small directional error can turn an inviting approach into an awkward negotiation with rough, slopes and angles.
A Promising Position in Percy’s Search for a Senior Win
Percy has yet to record a senior victory since turning 50 in May 2024, but his consistency suggests he has not spent the intervening period wandering around in search of his golf swing.
He has made all 81 of his cuts on the Champions Tour and recorded top-10 finishes during 2025 at this event, the Senior PGA Championship and the U.S. Senior Open.
The results point towards a player comfortable in elite senior company, even if the breakthrough trophy has so far remained elsewhere. At Gleneagles, Percy looked particularly assured after discovering something useful late in his preparations.
I’ve never been here before. But I found something late yesterday. The last four holes I hit it really nicely, and did it again today. Hopefully I’ll keep doing that and I’ll be okay.
He also retains considerable affection for golf in Britain and the particular demands of links-style play.
Sunningdale was incredible last year. And then I just love playing links golf over here. It’s brilliant. Yeah, any time I can come over here and play golf, I’m very happy.
There are still three rounds to negotiate, of course. Golf has a habit of treating first-round comfort as an administrative error, particularly when the leaderboard contains several players accustomed to rather grander stages.
Lionel Alexandre Goes Bogey-Free
Lionel Alexandre produced the tidiest card among Percy’s closest challengers, recording a bogey-free 64 to finish one shot off the lead.
The Frenchman made his first birdie at the seventh and then gathered further gains at the ninth, tenth, 12th, 14th and 18th. There was no dramatic mid-round rescue or frantic closing scramble — just a steady accumulation of birdies and an absence of expensive mistakes.
Alexandre credited a relaxed atmosphere with his caddie, although his approach to the tournament itself remained deliberately ordinary.
Today it was really, really cool. My caddie is a really good friend. We joke a lot on the course. No, I just take it as a regular tournament on the Tour. I see the same guys.
Maybe some, a few more names that are playing in the States but no, it’s a normal tournament for me. I’m going to try to manage my game for three more rounds and then we’ll see at the end.
Treating a championship containing four-time Major winner Els and former champion Jiménez as a normal week may require some mental discipline. It is nevertheless a useful way to prevent famous names from acquiring extra shots through reputation alone.
Ernie Els Stays Within Striking Distance
Els finished two shots behind Percy alongside Jiménez, Tom Penrice Jr, Pat Perez and the rest of a strong group at five under.
The South African opened with a birdie at the second, scrambled effectively at the fourth and putted well across the front nine. A bogey at the 13th was the only obvious blemish in an otherwise controlled opening round.
Kept it under control. I had a nice start. Birdied the second hole. I had a good up-and-down on four. I played the front nine quite well. Made some putts. The greens are quite smooth this morning, so hopefully it stays like that.
Els had spent the previous week in London and was encouraged by returning to competitive action with a solid score.
Then the back nine, I made a silly mistake on 13. It was really downwind. It was really hard to make bogey there. All in all, it was a solid round. I had a week off last week. I was down in London. So I played a bit of golf but really nice to have a nice start today.
His assessment of the King’s Course also captured its delicate balance. The running conditions encourage imagination and aggression, but only up to the point at which aggression begins wearing a false moustache and calling itself recklessness.
You’ve got keep your wits with you, you know. You can be really aggressive. If you aren’t, you can be really — spectacular. It’s a scores where you’ve got to get yourself around. The course is running a little bit, so you can hit linksy shots and play the wind. And the greens are tricky to read, tricky to putt. I think that’s why scoring is going to level out a little bit.
If Els is correct and the scoring becomes less generous, Percy’s opening seven-under total may become increasingly valuable.
Penrice Jr Recovers With an Eagle
Tom Penrice Jr supplied the round’s most pronounced change of direction.
The American turned in a one-over 35 after making a double bogey at the sixth. Rather than allowing the round to slide away, he made four birdies from the tenth and eagled the driveable 14th to surge into the group at five under.
Perez also reached five under without a bogey in his first Senior Open since turning 50 in March. Jiménez and Els each dropped only one shot during their rounds.
Behind them, Jerry Kelly, Taggart Ridings, Emanuele Canonica, Johan Edfors and Michael Wright finished at four under.
They were one stroke ahead of a group at three under containing two-time Major champion Zach Johnson and fellow Ryder Cup players Boo Weekley and David Howell.
Percy Has the Lead, but Little Room to Breathe
Percy’s reward for an accurate, imaginative opening round is a one-shot advantage and a leaderboard offering no obvious place to hide.
Alexandre has already demonstrated that he can navigate the King’s Course without a bogey. Els is close enough to apply pressure, Jiménez knows how to win this event and Penrice Jr has shown how quickly the standings can change when the shorter holes are attacked successfully.
Percy could hardly have asked for a better beginning. Keeping the lead will require more of the same disciplined driving, precise distance control and timely putting — along with the useful ability to ignore the famous names assembling directly behind him.
