Golf:England's Nick Dougherty finally had something to smile about this season when he began the Ryder Cup race today with an eight-under-par 63 at Crans-sur-Sierre to take a two-shot lead from a four-man group that includes Rory McIlroy and Martin Kaymer.
In a nightmare slump to 791st in the world the 29-year-old from Liverpool has not made a single halfway cut since the Hong Kong Open last November. But after a horror run of 21 early exits in a row the same number Justin Rose had at the start of his professional career Dougherty carded eight birdies and not one dropped shot at the Omega European Masters.
“It’s quite a bounce-back,” said Dougherty when interviewed afterwards by his wife Diana, golf presenter of Sky Sports and former girlfriend of Jonny Wilkinson. “I do like to be a little bit dramatic when I do everything, as you well know!
“It’s been tough coming home and having to deal with constant disappointment and I’m really, really proud of how I played.
“It feels great, obviously. I’ve not had a lot to be happy about and you’ve had to take the brunt of it and put up with me.
“It was difficult to find positives because there was nothing going my way, but today was super. My short game’s been great all year, but I drove it much better and hit some quality iron shots.
“I felt something click at Gleneagles last week (he missed the cut by one after a second round 69) and I also ‘manned up’ - instead of feeling sorry for myself and the world’s against me I fought for it.”
Dougherty covered the back nine first in a four-under 31, then added further birdies at the first, third, seventh and long ninth - the last of them when his pitch spun back to four feet after he had carved his second shot onto the adjoining 18th fairway.
Kaymer and McIlroy had set the morning pace with six-under 65s, while Lee Westwood was alongside them until he closed with two bogeys.
The world number two, rusty after a family holiday in Barbados, had come back brilliantly from a double bogey on the second, making eagle twos on the driveable fifth and seventh.
It was McIlroy’s first tournament since he injured himself hitting a tree root at the USPGA Championship.
“My arm’s nearly back to 100 per cent,” he said after making five birdies in his last eight holes. “I had a good bit of treatment on it and rested it.
“I kept my eye in last week, but it was nice to get back on the course and feel the competitive juices again.”
Kaymer has fallen from top of the world rankings to fifth since May, but looked much more like his old self and, in stark contrast to Westwood, finished with back-to-back birdies.
He and McIlroy share second place with England’s Gary Boyd and Korean Lee Sung, while British Open champion Darren Clarke was among those alongside Westwood four behind.
Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal was no example to his potential team members, fluffing a tap-in of less than six inches as he struggled to a 75. That was still one better than his predecessor Colin Montgomerie, however.
Michael Hoey had a mixed bag of six birdies and five bogeys in a one-under 71, while Peter Lawrie fought back from back-to-back double bogeys to pick up five birdies in his last 10 holes in also posting a 71.
Shane Lowry also finished on one under after coming home strongly with three birdies in his closing four holes, but Gareth Maybin will need a better showing in his second round after opening with a one-over 72.
