Richard Sterne battled breezy conditions to post a flawless five under par round of 67 and take a one-shot lead after day one of the Nexo Championship at Trump International Golf Links.
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The South African, starting from the tenth, carded two birdies on his front nine to make the turn in 34, before adding further gains at the par five first and par three third to climb into the early lead.
The six-time DP World Tour winner added a fifth birdie of the day after getting up and down from just off the green at the drivable par four seventh, before finishing par-par to set the new course record– which should it remain at the close of the week would earn him $10,000 through a new initiative on the DP World Tour in a partnership with title sponsor Nexo.
Sterne has struggled to find consistency this season but hopes his encouraging start in Aberdeen can provide him with the impetus for a strong run of performances over the remainder of the season.
Norwegian Andreas Halvorsen and South African Thomas Aiken, who teed off together in the opening group, nearly joined Sterne at five under, but both players bogeyed the last to sit one behind in second place alongside South Africa’s Louis Albertse.
Englishmen John Parry, Jordan Smith, Matthew Baldwin, Joe Dean and Alex Fitzpatrick, who briefly led in the afternoon, share fifth position on three under alongside Spaniard Jorge Campillo, defending champion Adrian Otaegui from the UAE and Dutchman Darius van Driel.
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