“Scotty was playing really nice,” said Smith, who finished with three birdies over his last four holes for a three-under 68. “He’s coming into form the old fella, I think, so he might be hard to chase down over the weekend.

“He just matches his body up so nicely sometimes and I feel like he’s doing that at the moment.”

Smith played his outward nine like he was still trying to wake up, which he probably was. He called the brain “a bit foggy”, and not because he had again overindulged out of golf’s most historic trophy. His mantra is simple this week: will over skill.

If anybody knows what his week has been like - bringing the trademark prize from a major back to Australia and being bombarded with fan and promotional requests - then it’s Scott. He did it in 2013 after winning The Masters. It felt like Scott was never out of his green jacket.

“Cam has had a rise to stardom this year,” Scott said. “He’s being pulled in all kinds of directions I’m sure, but it’s something he’s probably learnt pretty quickly to manage at big events.

“I really don’t have too many worries about Cam, but hopefully, he can enjoy the experience as well because that month of golf or so when I came home that year is one of the great memories of my career.”

Behind Smith, Scott and Fox was a group with defending champion Jed Morgan (-1). It must have felt like coming on stage after Sinatra.

“Playing behind those three big dogs doesn’t help anyone,” Morgan laughed. “It would have been nice if they split them up so it didn’t look as favourable for them.”

Loading

Said Smith: “I’ve definitely enjoyed [the week], but it has been long. I had [Wednesday] afternoon off, I couldn’t wait to get home and have a big nap. So I did that and had a good sleep last night. I went out there and did what I had to do I think.”

Wang produces military-like precision

A golfer who spent most of this year on compulsory military service and was prevented from touching a club traded blows with the big guns in an absorbing opening round.

While Lee and Jason Scrivener were joined by Lyras atop the leaderboard yesterday, a Korean just one stroke behind admitted he’s struggling to re-adjust to professional golf.

Jeunghun Wang fired a composed five-under 66 – joining Adam Scott in a four-way tie behind the leading trio – only four months after his military service ended. The 27-year-old former European Tour winner has only played a handful of tournaments since returning to the sport.

“The feeling is [that I’m] not 100 per cent back,” Wang said. “I’m trying to get better. It was not a good experience. I had no golf at all.

“We had to shoot guns every day, run every day in the morning. It is [hard]. I was thinking about golf all the time. It was pretty hard. [But] I’m really happy to play in Australia.”

The issue of Korean athletes being absolved from military service has been a long-standing and sensitive one. Able-bodied South Korean males are supposed to be conscripted before the age of 28, but there are exemptions if they win an Olympic medal.

Watch the Australian PGA Championship on the 9Network and 9Now from November 24-27.