The RBC Heritage: First round leader Cameron Young learns Masters lesson, Joaquin Niemann chases

He was justifiably excited about his Masters debut last week, hopeful that he could improve on the two missed cuts in his first two Major Championship appearances.

But the 24-year-old from New York took the blow on the chin and opted to heed a harsh lesson.

"I've shown that I can compete at this level, but so far in the Majors I've gotten to play, I haven't been able to do that.

Harbour Town is a less severe examination than last week, but it is not without its difficulties.

"You can't get around here without thinking for sure," Young admitted, after circling eight birdies to bounce clear of second placed Joaquin Niemann.

"I think the preparation for a lot of tee shots is very important. And it can get pretty windy out there, so you have to really pick your spots where you think you can be a little aggressive and places where you just can't."

"Coming off the Masters, I wasn't hitting it great," he revealed after a circuit which also saw eight birdies (and two bogeys).

Snazzy looking leaderboard for Day 1 at the #RBCHeritage. pic.twitter.com/lKoH07E1VP

"After a slow start, my putter got pretty hot. My irons felt great. Tee shot was good. So, yeah, it was a great day."

"This is the kind of course you've got to hit it both ways, especially off the tee," he said. "There's tee shots that you must hit draws and others you must hit fades. I think that's kind of fun. That's kind of the courses I grew up playing when I was a kid."

No less than seven men share third including Patrick Cantlay, Shane Lowry, Corey Conners, Graeme McDowell and Sepp Straka.

Cameron Smith, who challenged for the Green Jacket last week before finding water at the 12th, laboured for a 73, while Dustin Johnson carded a 72. Both have a fight on