SCOTLAND'S Paul Lawrie had nine birdies and England's David Howell claimed five and an eagle to leave a trio of Ryder Cup golfers and Russell Claydon, in particular, squirming with embarrassment in Spain yesterday.
Lawrie shot a first round 65 in Catalan Open at Bonmont, where Howell took a share of second place on 66 with Spaniards Domingo Hospital and Fernando Roca.
But Philip Walton, the main Irish hope for the £50,000 title he won last year, had a 75, and his Ryder Cup team mates David Gilford and Mark James had to settle for returns of 70 and 71. Claydon suffered the indignity of taking an 11 at the 17th on the way to a 79.
Paul McGinley was at the heads of the eight Irish contenders, matching the par of 72, with Milltown's Francis Howley on 74. The other five, Raymond Burns, John McHenry, David Higgins, Padraig Harrington and Jimmy Heggarty, were collectively 28 over par.
Conditions were benign with a warm sun and gentle breeze, but Walton got off on the wrong foot by three putting his second green (the 11th), and he again misjudged the severity of the slope at the short 16th to lose another stroke. However, a birdie at the short 12th, where he holed from 12 feet, and another at the 17th, got him out in par.
But the Malahide golfer ran into trouble in the opening four holes of his inward hall, striking his approach to the first green into a lake. He was in two bunkers at the third and again in sand at the fourth, and that was another three strokes lost.
A further three putts at the eighth put him four over par and it took a superb nine iron approach to within four inches of the last flag to give him a reasonable chance of survival today.
McGinley described his 72 containing two birdies and two bogeys as "unexciting". He also started at the 10th and was two over after three strokes on the 11th and 13th greens. But he was home in two at the 17th for a birdie four and got back to par with a birdie three at the third by pitching to six feet.
Howley hit his first two woods within 12 feet of the opening flag for an eagle three, but then came to grief on the greens. He had three putts at the fourth and eighth, and took four for a double bogey six at the 12th where he had three attempts to get down from only two feet.
Harrington (75) had to endure similar agonies in triple putting at the 13th and 14th, while McHenry (76) had three sixes on his card. Higgins (76) and Burns (78) here also all at sea with their putters, and it is best to draw a veil over the efforts of Jimmy Heggarty in compiling 83.
