The Open: Matt Fitzpatrick and Jordan Spieth 10 years on from Muirfield and those Sheffield United and Leeds United links

Matt Fitzpatrick was an amateur qualifier from Sheffield, Jordan Spieth a rookie on the PGA Tour who had just won his maiden title at the John Deere Classic to qualify for the 2013 Open at Muirfield.

They were playing partners those first two rounds, along with another young American in Russell Henley, in a group that projected boyish enthusiasm, neither individual sure how far their talents could take them.

In the case of Fitzpatrick and Spieth, it would almost be to the very top of the game. The Sheffield teenager won the silver medal for low amateur that week, then the US Amateur later that summer and the US Open at Brookline just 13 months ago.

Spieth has won three majors, including the Open at the fifth attempt in 2017.

A decade on they are back together for rounds one and two here at Royal Liverpool, both a little longer in the tooth and more focused on trying to get an end result this week.

Spieth made a better fist of putting himself in place to do that on Thursday morning, making the most of benign conditions to shoot a two-under-par 69.

He is a lot more comfortable on links courses than Fitzpatrick, who said his one-over par round of 72 was a little bit ‘meh’, even if he did birdie the par-three 17th that is causing controversy because of how penal it can be.

"I wouldn't say I'm a big fan of links golf,” confessed Fitzpatrick. “Although I think this place is very, very fair.”

As for that maiden Open bow 10 years ago, it did raise a smile from the Yorkshireman.

“You just reminded me about that,” he laughed. “I'll mention that (to Jordan) tomorrow, but yeah, that's quite funny actually. I forgot about that.”

There was another reason for there to be a jovial atmosphere between the two yesterday – football.

Fitzpatrick is a Sheffield United fan while Spieth is one of a number of high-profile American sports stars to invest into Leeds United as part of the 49ers Enterprises buyout. Fitzpatrick’s caddie Billy Foster is a Leeds fan.

Spieth said: “It was brought to me last Fall by a couple of guys that knew the 49ers guys really well, so I’ve been looking at it since then and cheering them on this year.

"Then they were relegated, we were waiting to see what the new structure of the deal would be, but it was going to take a lot for me not to be involved, I’d already gotten emotionally involved.

"Myself and Justin Thomas have been texting each other for six months for every game, even other games where we needed teams to lose. So it’ll be fun to keep track of them trying to get promoted."

Asked by The Yorkshire Post if there had been any banter between the three of them, Spieth responded: "Not banter, just support. He (Billy) is a big Leeds supporter.

"I had a bit of banter with Matt about it, there were fans saying ‘good luck Leeds’ and Matt was saying ‘you’re going to need it’ with Sheffield United moving up.”