KLM Open: Day one digest

Julien rode his luck, Joe got his reward, Pablo had a topsy turvy time and we saw some exquisite wedge play on day one of the KLM Open.

Here is everything you need to know from Thursday at The International.

Guerrier leads the way

Julien Guerrier carded a brilliant, battling 65 to open up a one-shot lead after a wild and windy opening day. The Frenchman battled wind and rain in the morning and was six under when play was stopped for the first time due to storms in the area. Upon the resumption he made a brilliant up-and-down to save par on his final hole and set the target, a target that would not come near to being caught as the wind got even stronger for the afternoon starters. And it was wind that then brought an early conclusion to the day’s play, with all the early starters in the clubhouse and all the afternoon’s players having completed between two and ten holes. “I played obviously really good,” he said. “The fairway was really important because from the rough you cannot control the ball and the greens are very sloppy here, so it is tough from the beginning. I think in these conditions sometimes you need to be lucky."

Joe Dean on song

Joe Dean was happy to see the hard work paying off as he carded a ninth consecutive under-par DP World Tour round. The Englishman was one of the stories of the 2024 season as he finished second at the Magical Kenya Open presented by absa just weeks after working as a supermarket delivery driver. He followed that with another runner-up finish here at The International as his remarkable rookie campaign saw him play his way into the season-ending DP World Tour Championship. The 31-year-old could not repeat that success in 2025 as he missed more cuts than he made, although he did make it to the first Play-Off event in Abu Dhabi thanks to a runner-up finish at the Nexo Championship. Now in 2026, he is beginning to find consistency, and while it has not been an easy the road, he is beginning to look more established Tour player than overnight sensation. “I’ve just been working on the same things I’ve been working on for probably the last six to eight months,” he said. “The problem with this game is you don’t know when you’re going to get the rewards of it. It is tough and I have questioned things a couple of times but I’ve got a good team around me and hopefully this is the start to some good form.”

Battling the elements

It says a lot that none of the afternoon starters could get any closer than within four shots of the lead when play was ended early due to the conditions. Casey Jarvis, one of the stars of the season so far, was three over through nine holes but that's not to say he wasn't managing the conditions. Look at this effort.

No putter required

Sand? Grass? Wind? Rain? No matter. These boys are this good.

Pablo's wild ride

Golf can turn on a dime and few know that better than Spanish veteran Pablo Larrazábal, who saw his day go from the ridiculous to the sublime between the eighth and tenth.