A year after crashing out of the Open having made “bonehead mistakes”, Justin Thomas is a lot happier with his game after shooting a three-under 68 to take the clubhouse lead at Royal Troon.

Missing the cut by eight shots at Hoylake 12 months ago had the American worrying for his Ryder Cup place – although he would subsequently receive a captain’s pick – as he was struggling to find any form.

While things have picked up for him this year with five top-10 finishes, including eighth at last month’s US Open, he failed to make the weekend at the Masters or US PGA.

Thomas has missed the cut in five of his last seven majors but managed to negotiate some tricky conditions, briefly reaching four under before having to take a drop for an unplayable lie in gorse that resulted in a double bogey, to set the pace among the morning starters.

“I couldn’t even tell you what I was thinking or how it was then,” said Thomas, who followed his opening 62 in last week’s Scottish Open with three rounds in the 70s to finish 62nd, when asked how his play compared to last year’s Open.

“I’m just worried about how I am now, and I’m very pleased with my game and know things are continuing to work in the right direction. I’ve just got to keep trying to play well.

“I feel like everything has been turning the right way and I’ve been working on the right things. I haven’t really had much to show for it but that’s just how this game works sometimes.

“But I know that I’m close: the shots I’m hitting, the scores I’m shooting. I’m doing a lot of things a lot better, I would say.

“When I’m out there playing I feel like I’m hitting a lot of really quality shots or drives and just getting nothing out of it.”