Hollywood stars and sporting greats joined forces as the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship got under way.
Downton Abbey’s Matthew Goode, Boyzone singer Ronan Keating and champion jockey AP McCoy were among those in action at Carnoustie.
Notting Hill star Hugh Grant and former Eagles guitarist Don Felder joined football greats Michael Ballack, Johan Cruyff, Alessandro del Piero, Ruud Gullit and Andriy Shevchenko at St Andrews in the celebrity pro-am event.
Olympic downhill gold medal skier Franz Klammer was among the early starters at Kingsbarns for the championship which has a prize fund of $5 million.
Goode, 37, who plays Henry Talbot in Downton Abbey and stars in CBS legal drama The Good Wife, said he started playing golf at the age of 14.
He said: “We get to play with our sporting heroes this week.
“In 2010 I played with Danny Willett who finished runner-up in the individual event and playing on the final day of the tournament was an unbelievable experience.
“I have been itching to come back and play again but things like work have got in the way.”
Goode, who plays off a six handicap, described the courses at Carnoustie, Kingsbarns and St Andrews as “superb”.
He said: “The Old Course at St Andrews is all about its history.
“Carnoustie is a real test and Kingsbarns can be challenging too, although it is so stunning scenically.”
The championship incorporates two separate competitions an individual professional tournament for the world’s leading golfers and a team event in which the professionals are paired with the amateur golfers.
Champion jockey AP McCoy said he had been looking forward to competing ever since he retired from horse racing five months ago.
A member of West Berkshire Golf Club, McCoy plays off a 12 handicap and said it was good to “go in at the deep end” yesterday at Carnoustie.
He said: “I know it’s regarded as the most difficult of the three courses we play this week, although the fact I have never played any of them before will make them all difficult.
“But it’s best to get Carnoustie out of the way especially if the weather holds.
“We amateurs are all privileged to be here who wouldn’t want to play in this event given the chance?”
Boyzone singer Ronan Keating said he loves playing golf in Scotland and described it as “a real privilege” to compete in the tournament.
He said: “The weather is fantastic and the atmosphere here is always so relaxed.”
Guitar virtuoso Don Felder, who wrote the music to Hotel California, plays off a 12 handicap and first played in 2003.
He said: “Golf is my favourite pastime so it’s fantastic to get the opportunity to take part in the Dunhill Championship.
“I‘ve been on stage in front of thousands of people armed only with my guitar and I don’t bat an eyelid, but give me a golf club and the nerves kick in.”
The tournament is played across all three courses until Sunday’s final day when the professional players compete for the title at St Andrews.More in sport on pages 58 and 59