Golf: Laura Davies, the first woman to compete in an Australasian or European men's tour event, said she was tired and nervous after a three-over-par 75 in the opening round of the co-sanctioned ANZ Championship.

The 40-year-old former world number one was joint 124th after recording two birdies and five bogeys. The birdies came on the back nine after a disappointing start. The English woman scored minus one for her round in the modified stableford system that rewards attacking golf.

Players receive eight points for an albatross, five for an eagle, two for a birdie, none for a par, minus one for a bogey and minus three for a multiple bogey.

To put Davies' performance into context, Australia's Nick O'Hern led the field after the first round on 18 points while Jeppe Huldahl brought up the rear on minus seven.

Briton John Bickerton trailed O'Hern by two shots, on plus 16. Both shot eight-under-par 64 at the Horizons Golf Resort north of Sydney.

Australia's US Amateur champion Nick Flanagan and Briton Steve Webster were equal third on plus 14.

Swedes Peter Hedblom and Joakim Haeggman followed, with Mark Foster on 12 points making it three Englishmen in the top six.

Miles Tunnicliff finished on nine points, Nick Dougherty on seven, level with Brian Davis and Ian Woosnam, while defending champion Paul Casey opened with an erratic 73 for four points.

Peter Baker finished one point behind Davies on minus two, along with the likes of Pearce and Australian Craig Spence.

"Minus one to the field looks terrible, to the guys who are shooting 18 points, but in a way I am quite pleased with it," Davies said after playing her first competitive round in two months.

She may have won four majors and a total of 56 women's tournaments, but nothing quite prepared her for the pressure of being the first woman to tee off in a European Tour event.

She spent last night in dreaded anticipation of her opening tee shot. In the end, she outdrove both Peter Senior and Jean van de Velde but admitted it took her most of her round to finally shake off the nervousness which infected her round.

"I was just scared of making a fool of myself all the way round until the last few holes," said Davies, who attracted the largest gallery of the day and was warmly applauded the whole way round.

"I didn't sleep a lot last night to be honest. I didn't feel too clever at 7.50 this morning. I was just thinking about that first tee shot. It is so stupid to get so worked up. I suppose because it is a European Tour event and there are some big names out there.

"I just can't play my normal game. I didn't sleep a lot last night to be honest," Davies said. "The trouble is, for these guys it's an ordinary event. For them they are just trying to win it and I'm out there under all sorts of pressure."

Davies said she remained hopeful of making the halfway cut. "If I can cut the rubbish out, make four or five birdies and then you never know what's going to happen," Davies said.

O'Hern, who suffered turmoil last year as his wife endured a difficult pregnancy, was naturally delighted with his round. "I really lit up on my front nine," he said. "I think you have really got to go after things and if you make a bogey it is only one point lost which doesn't hurt too much.

"I haven't been playing well lately but today something clicked. When you get in the groove you get in an aggressive frame of mind and you go at anything."