When Ian Poulter walked off the 18th green, he wasn’t No. 2 to anyone in the clubhouse. Or Tiger Woods, for that matter. The flamboyant Englishman, known as much for his garish outfits and eccentric hairstyles as his shotmaking, sent Masters patrons into a frenzy with a hole-in-one Thursday. He finished with a 2-under 70 for a share of the early lead with Robert Kalsson of Sweden.

Woods plodded through the first 12 holes with nothing but pars on a warm, sunny day at Augusta National. He stumbled with two straight bogeys, but quickly got back to even when he chipped in from just off the green at No. 15, bringing out his first fist pump of the tournament.

Of course, it’s early. No matter what happens in the opening round, Woods likely will remain the overwhelming favorite to win his fifth green jacket _ the starting point for an unprecedented Grand Slam.

But the early star was Poulter, who’s never had any trouble stirring things up _ whether it’s his fashion sense or willingness to say whatever’s on his mind.

He certainly got attention with an interview published late January, when he conceded no one was as good as Woods but that he felt capable of being the world’s second-ranked golfer if he played to his potential. Poulter’s comments were quite bold, considering he’s never won in the U.S. and has only one Top 10 finish in a major, sparking everything from criticism to ridicule.

“Basically, I was saying how good Tiger was,” Poulter said, “and how achievable I think it is to get to the No. 2 spot. If you play well over a year’s period or a two-year period, you can get there.”

Poulter certainly played well in the opening round, putting the ball right where he wanted on virtually every hole. That was never more evident than it was at 16, the 170-yard gem known as Redbud.

With more fans than ever able to watch from the adjacent hill, Poulter launched an 8-iron over the water that landed about 20 feet short of the hole, curled up and around the ridge _ and rolled right in.

“As soon as it left the club, I knew it was going to be pretty good,” Poulter said. “It was quite nice to see it drop.”

The patrons roared as though it was the back nine Sunday.

“There was an unbelievable buzz,” said Poulter, who actually went a little tame with his attire: lime green pants with matching visor, and a striped white shirt. “That was a special moment. The hairs on the back of my neck were standing up. It was great.”

At the next hole, still pumped about his ace, Poulter overpowered a 5-iron into the wind, the ball soaring over the green. He wound up taking his only bogey of the day on a course that has toughened up considerably since being soaked by rain last weekend.

“That had to be adrenaline,” Poulter said. “That’s the only way to explain it.”

Karlsson, a 38-year-old Swede playing in his second Masters, took advantage of the two par 5s on the back side, making birdies at both for his 70.

Mark O’Meara, the 1998 winner, shot a surprising 71 that left him one stroke off the lead among those in the clubhouse. Among those still on the course, Justin Rose was at 4 under through 14 holes, while defending Masters champion Zach Johnson was off to a strong start at 3 under with two holes to play.

Two-time Masters winner Phil Mickelson showed early on why many considered him to be Woods’ major challenger. He birdied the first two holes to jump right on the leaderboard.

Woods and everyone else teed off about an hour behind schedule after soupy fog blanketed the course just past sunrise. He got off to a shaky start, pulling his drive up against the second cut to the left, then missing the green to the right with a towering second shot.

He chipped 6 feet past the cup, but managed to sink the putt to save par, the ball curling around the lip before dropping in. That set the tone for a solid if unspectacular round.

Woods drove his second shot at the par-5 13th over the green, needed two more pitches to keep it there and took bogey. He made his second straight bogey at No. 14, but finally put a red number on the board at the next hole.

The first shot of the day was struck by Arnold Palmer, who took care of the ceremonial duties for the second year in a row.

Because of the fog, the King was able to say his tee shot traveled so far he never saw it land. Visibility was limited to about 200 yards until the sun broke through.

“As a matter of fact, it went out of sight,” Palmer said with a smirk.