DP World Tour: Nexo Scottish Championship.. Leaderboard
Richard Sterne revealed losing "seven or eight balls" was the catalyst for setting a new course record at Trump International Golf Links and holding the first round lead in the Nexo Championship.
The South African without a win since 2013 and now ranked #1049, fell victim to strong winds caused by Storm Floris which battered the Aberdeenshire coastline during Tuesday's practice round as he needed to restock his bag with new balls.56
However, the 43-year-old took advantage of calmer conditions on the first morning of the tournament, carding five birdies in a flawless -5 67 to earn a one shot lead and break the course record of 68.
Norwegian Andreas Halvorsen and South African Thomas Aiken, who teed off together in the opening group, should have joined Sterne at -5, but both players bogeyed the last to sit one behind alongside South Africa's Louis Albertse at -4.
"Yeah, very happy," Sterne said. "The course is very tricky even though the wind is not as bad as it was in the practice round on Tuesday and I played well.
"I hit the ball a lot better than have done for a while, so that was quite key.
"When I was here on Tuesday, it was about double this wind and I lost about seven or eight balls. "I wasn't off to the world’s best start, but it is a lot calmer than it was then. I think Tuesday did me a bit of good.
Aiken was blemish-free after an eagle at the tenth in addition to three birdies before his blip at the last to set the initial tone at four under.
Playing partner Halvorsen, who eagled the seventh, mixed four birdie and two dropped shots in his 68. Albertse started on the back nine and carded birdies at the tenth, 14th, 17th before coolly draining another at the ninth to earn a share of second at -4.
An English quintet of John Parry, Jordan Smith, Matthew Baldwin, Joe Dean and Alex Fitzpatrick, who briefly shared the lead in the afternoon, sit one adrift at -3 alongside Spaniard Jorge Campillo, the United Arab Emirates' Adrian Otaegui and Dutchman Darius van Driel.
edit>>>> Canada's Aaron Cockerill had a double bogey six in his round but finished in the increasing wind with a birdie 4 at the 18th for +2 74 T56.
europeantour.com
Bryan Angus
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