Finland’s Mikko Ilonen made an impressive start as the Ryder Cup points race began at the ISPS Handa Wales Open.
The Nordea Masters winner, currently a lofty 13th in The Race to Dubai and looking to break into the top ten who will split the bonus pool at the end of the season, enjoyed three birdies in his first four holes and remained three under through seven.
Espen Kofstad, who won the Challenge Tour last season, also started well to be part of an eight-way tie for second.
Portugal’s Ricardo Santos, Swedes Johan Edfors and Rikard Karlberg, South African Jbe Kruger and English trio Mark Foster, Robert Rock and Chris Wood were also two in the early stage at The Celtic Manor Resort.
Italian Francesco Molinari, who played in the last two Ryder Cup victories including over the Twenty Ten Course being used this week, birdied the 11th and 12th.
Molinari had dropped a shot on the 13th but holed his second shot on the short par four 15th for an eagle two, only to drop a shot on the 16th to fall back to two under and bogeyed the next as well.
Ryder Cup Captain Paul McGinley struck the very first shot in the qualifying race, although began with a bogey.
McGinley, who will lead Europe's quest for an eighth win in the last ten biennial contests at Gleneagles next year, was in the first group out at 7:25am.
With the Ryder Cup trophy on the first tee alongside him, the 46 year old Irishman found heavy rough with his drive and was forced to hack out onto the fairway, from where he was unable to save par.
McGinley got back to level par with a birdie on the fifth but remained three off the lead.
Molinari, whose halved match with Tiger Woods at Medinah ensured Europe won the Cup outright, was enduring a real rollercoaster round, running up a triple bogey six on the 17th and then missing a tap-in on the first to take a double bogey six there.
Ilonen had missed an almost identical putt moments earlier to also take six but bounced back with a birdie on the par five second to lie two under, one off the lead now shared by Rock, Wood, Santos and Wales' Gareth Wright.
