Luke Donald back in contention at RBC Heritage

Luke Donald has experienced highs at Harbour Town Golf Links.

He’s been runner-up here three times. He arrived in 2012 as the top-ranked player in the world.

But Donald has struggled lately, and there’s no better proof than his vantage point for last week’s Masters — he watched from his couch as the season’s first major championship unfolded.

Back at one of his favorite courses, Donald fired a 5-under-par 66 to share the lead with Branden Grace to open the RBC Heritage Presented by Boeing at a breezy Harbour Town Golf Links on Thursday.

Jason Day, the top-ranked player in the world, is a shot back at 4 under after finishing with a bogey. Three other players opened with 67, including Matt Kuchar, the 2014 champion.

Kuchar edged Donald in 2014 by holing a bunker shot on the final hole.

Putting and low confidence have kept Donald down since his reign as No. 1, he revealed after his round. He has slipped to 95th in the world.

“I think just in general it’s been a tough couple years for me,” said Donald, who didn’t play the Masters for the first time since 2004. “I certainly feel like my game isn’t very far away, but the results certainly haven’t matched what I think I’m capable of.”

While absent from Augusta National, Donald spent the week offering social-media commentary, including a stream of tweets during the final round while fellow Englishman Danny Willett played mistake-free golf to grab the green jacket. Missing the Masters made Donald’s “blood boil,” he posted to his Instagram account last week.

“But life doesn’t always work out the way you want it to,” he posted with a photo of a practice session at The Bear’s Club in Jupiter, Fla. “You are going to have some disappointments along the way, and get knocked down a few times — and that’s OK because every time you get up you are stronger for it. Not playing this week just makes the fires inside of me burn a little stronger.”

His quest for a major championship spurred Donald to work to drive the ball better.

The process failed. Instead, Donald lost what had been his strength — his touch around the greens.

“That’s a big difference. Those shots add up quickly,” Donald said. “Getting those back will hopefully see me playing a little better and getting my name up in those leaderboards.”

Day, who won consecutive tournaments in March to ascend to No. 1, marred his opening round with a bogey on the par-4 18th after his approach plugged in the lip of the greenside bunker. But that was his only bogey on a windy Thursday.

Day reiterated his wish to create distance between himself and his chasers in the Official World Golf Ranking. He hinted at some fatigue following the week of a major championship.

Grace is the second highest-ranked player in the field at No. 14 in the world. He finished seventh here last year. Putting has been his struggle much of the season, he said, including during a missed cut last week of the Masters.

But a return to Harbour Town might have rekindled good feelings.

“This is where it really kick-started everything (last year),” Grace said. “And I always like to come back. I really like getting around this place.”

The South African briefly reached 6 under with an up-and-down for birdie on the 15th but followed with his only bogey of the round. Players are always wary of the wind here and expect a continued challenge.

“It’s going to be tough competition over the next three days,” Day said. “But once again the weather is going to be a big factor in that. More of a mental grind and physical grind than anything — you’ve just got to keep yourself in it.”

This story was originally published April 14, 2016 at 7:28 PM with the headline "Luke Donald back in contention at RBC Heritage."