Monty has a happy return in front of his hometown fans

The cheers of encouragement for local favorite Colin Montgomerie detonated like mortar blasts around the tees and greens of Royal Troon, where Montgomerie first flailed a club at the age of six. Montgomerie responded with smiles for his loyal fans and an encouraging opening round of 2-under 69.

TROON, Scotland (PA) -- After all the pain and introspection of the past three months, Colin Montgomerie at last discovered the power of love.

It may not have emanated from his estranged wife, Eimear. But it came in bucketloads from the fans who flocked to Montgomerie's home course of Royal Troon and propelled him to a first-round 2-under 69, his second-best start ever in an Open Championship.

The cheers of encouragement detonated like mortar blasts around the tees and greens of Troon, where Montgomerie first flailed a club at the age of six. None moreso than on the 12th green, where Montgomerie arrived in a whirl of uncertainty after having just dropped three shots in the space of 20 minutes to squander an encouraging outward nine.

Normally such a run of misfortune would have seen the old Montgomerie sizzling like the famed fish suppers in these parts. But Thursday saw the new Montgomerie, chastened by the harsh realities of an impending divorce -- more reflective and considerate, a man apparently with life and golf in a fresh perspective.

And if at times he appeared to be on happy pills then, in truth, few sportsmen could have failed to have been inspired by the roar that greeted him as he reached the 431-yard par-4 12th.

A towering 6-iron to six feet set up a six-foot birdie putt, which he duly stroked into the hole to regain the momentum in a faltering round.

It could prove pivotal to the continuing career of the 41-year-old, who carries the millstone of being 'the best golfer never to win a major.' Later, the gratitude flowed from his lips.

"I thank them terrifically for helping me out on the 12th green," said Montgomerie of his fans. "When I approached it knowing I had dropped three shots, the reception was fantastic and it enabled me to continue my round.

"It's all thanks to them," he added. "That support enabled me to break 70."

Montgomerie is riding a wave that has seen him receive "thousands" of letters following the much-publicized break-up of his marriage.

"From taxi drivers in London stopping, to people in the streets, to people at airports, to anybody I might meet in the public eye, I'm getting terrific support from everywhere, not just on the golf course today," said Montgomerie. "The letters are quite incredible. The theme is always the same, right behind me. I don't feel as alone as you might feel I am."

Whether it can rejuvenate his golf game enough to make him a contender at this Championship on the course on which he would love to win most remains unclear.

He will have to eradicate the lapses of concentration that saw his radar go wayward with his approach to the 10th, where his subsequent chip went flying all the way through the green and his putt halting woefully short for a double-bogey.

His bogey at the tough 490-yard 11th was more understandable, with his drive deemed unplayable after finding the bottom of a gorse bush.

Montgomerie let out a trademark sigh, walked back 20 yards and took a drop. And while his approach failed to make the green, he still two-putted for a five.

Such sang-froid was commendable, though don't run away with the idea that this most grisly of Scots has turned totally into a teddy bear.

There were shades of the old Montgomerie, not least at the "Postage Stamp" eighth when a camera clicked high up on a makeshift tower as he addressed a makeable eight-foot birdie.

Montgomerie stepped away from the ball, shot a glance that would have frozen the nearby sea and then saw his putt roll just past the hole.

"Make that the last time, okay," he barked at the offending cameraman before stomping off. It was understandable, though in the past Montgomerie would have seethed for the rest of the round.

This time he refocused immediately and in his new mood of contrition even tried to see the photographer's point of view.

"They were just snapping a bit too late," he said. "Because it's the Open, some cameramen here are new to golf and I'm quite quick.

"When I've taken my practice stroke I hit the ball within four seconds," he added. "They don't realize how quick I am. It's not their fault. It's one of those things."

Montgomerie protecting photographers? Truly there has been a transformation.

"If you're not 3-under at the turn, God help you," Montgomerie had proclaimed before his round. He managed that with birdies at the second, fifth and sixth, though it was the par on the 370-yards opening hole of which he was most proud.

"There was a lot of media interest in me this morning and I felt quite nervous," he admitted. "It was good in a way and when I managed to par the first it was important. I settled down after that."

He did more than that. With his dad James, a former Royal Troon secretary, following him round, for the first time in a long time Montgomerie actually appeared to be enjoying his day at the office. The broadest of grins lit up his naturally sour features when he slotted his birdie at the 15th.

"I'm not shying away from anything and I'm enjoying the whole experience," he agreed. "This Open couldn't have come at a better time for me or at a better place.

"Whether that score was 75 or 65, I was going to enjoy myself," he added. "Yes, it helps if you break 70 but I told my caddie on the first tee, whatever happens today we're going to enjoy ourselves."

That rarest of commodities, that beaming Montgomerie smile, said he had done just that.

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