Three Australians in top five at Oak Hill including co-leader Adam Scott Adam Scott tees off at the fifth at Oak Hill, on his way to a five-under-par 65 and a share of the lead in the US PGA Championship. ADAM Scott was so sublime yesterday that he flirted with breaking 63, the Holy Grail in majors golf. At six under par through 14 holes at a rain-softened Oak Hill - where par is 70 - the Queenslander needed only two more birdies to become the first man to shoot 62 at a major. Instead, he would three-putt and need a colossal par save from the last fairway to shoot a five-under-par 65. But he wasn't complaining, for the prospect of bookend majors was still very much alive as Australia's first Masters champion joined veteran American Jim Furyk atop the leaderboard after the opening round of the US PGA Championship. "I felt very good out there today," Scott said. I felt like I could swing freely and I was hitting all the shots that I wanted to hit. When you get something going for you in a major, sometimes you have got to be not afraid to get out of your own way and let go, and I did that. Scott -- who seems to have put his final-round misadventures at Muirfield quickly behind him -- began his round, playing alongside the year's two other major champions, Phil Mickelson and Justin Rose, nervously. He went way right on his opening tee shot and needed to punch out from tree branches. A nifty par save from 73m seemed to steady him, and after two scratchy pars, Scott switched gears and made five birdies in a row. "Probably the best run I've ever had," he said. I just hit really nice shots and didn't leave myself too much work. It was a dream start after kind of a nervous first couple of holes. The overnight rain that made Oak Hill more benign than it's been in a major returned in the middle of Scott's round and the resulting delay seemed to take some wind from his sails. Scott wasn't the only Australian to take advantage of the soft conditions yesterday. Three Australian flags were in the top five. Jason Day wasn't at his best last week at the Bridgestone Invitational but responded with a three-under-par round of 67. "I played pretty poorly last week, and I worked very hard in the last week to get my game up to scratch," he said. The Queenslander, who had his chance at the US Open, finishing second to Rose, hit the ball well but also had a little luck. "I hit a lot of greens, which was nice, and had a good chip-in on 11, which was also nice," he said. Like Scott, he said he was "just a little sloppy after the rain delay." The surprise of the Australian contingent - seeking to become the first since Steve Elkington to lift the Wanamaker Trophy - was Marcus Fraser, who went out early and also turned in a 67. Fraser started with two bogeys but played his final 12 in five under. "A bogey-bogey start was pretty standard for the way things are going the last few months," he said. Been struggling a bit, but everything sort of came together. Fraser credited his putter for his good score. "You can't shoot a good score without holing putts," he said. I made a couple long ones today and holed out pretty well, as well. Happy that everything came together for a change. Tiger Woods wasn't so happy after a one-over-par round of 71 left him languishing tied at 50th. Coming off a seven-shot win last week, Woods never seemed comfortable. He began the day by spinning an approach well off the green and barely making par. Although he said later he felt he should've shot under par, the truth was he hit only nine greens in regulation and got up and down on seven of the greens he missed. What left a sour taste, however, was the double bogey he made at his final hole. He was in greenside rough in two but chunked a chip into the bunker and couldn't get up and down from there. Mickelson, too, shot 71 and also made double bogey on his last. Several other big names, though, are in the mix. Lee Westwood, who blew the third-round lead at last month's Open Championship, rebounded with a four-under-par round of 66 to be just one off the lead. Matt Kuchar, one of the more consistent players on the US tour, shot 67 and Steve Stricker, Jason Dufner and the in-form Swede Henrik Stenson are all at two under par. Even Rory McIlroy, the defending champion who's been mired in a year-long slump, was walking again with a little swagger after he shot a 69 that was about the worst score he could've turned in based on his ball-striking. Furyk, meanwhile, relied on a hot putter to shoot his 65. He was later asked about the 2011 US Open, where he threw away the lead with two holes left, allowing Webb Simpson to win. "I'm on a nice little high, but y'all are trying to bring me down," he said, only half-jokingly.