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Ross McGowan shoots super 62 to lead Made in HimmerLand
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Ross McGowan shoots super 62 to lead Made in HimmerLand

Ross McGowan swooped late in the day to take a one-shot lead after the opening round of the 2022 Made in HimmerLand.

Ross McGowan

The Englishman started his round at the tenth, got off to a flyer with an opening birdie and five more followed before he leapt into pole position by chipping in for eagle at the par-five eighth and tapping in for birdie on his final hole.

That blistering finish allowed him to sign for a nine-under-par 62.

“I’m very happy with that round, hit the ball close early doors and left myself a few birdies from four or six feet or so," said McGowan.

"Back nine I hit a couple of loose ones but got away with them. I ended up just in the collar on eight and missed my second shot short right but managed to chip it in for the eagle and then nine, there’s quite a big slope on that fairway so found the semi, and managed to get it close again.

“I felt like it’s been getting better the last few weeks but it’s nice to finally put a round together and hopefully I can keep it going for the next three days.”

Five players had been tied for the lead before McGowan's move after a day of incredible scoring in Denmark.

Rasmus Hojgaard

Early starters Ewen Ferguson, Matthew Southgate and Justin Walters set the mark before a string of home players mounted late charges, with Rasmus Højgaard and Marcus Helligkilde joining the party at eight under.

Højgaard, who has a win in each of the last three years but none in 2022, posted four birdies on the front nine and joined the pace-setters with a tap-in birdie at the 17th having picked up shots at the 12th, 13th and 16th.

He was close to hitting nine under, skimming the hole with a long birdie putt at the 18th.

Ferguson, with six birdies in his round and an eagle from 140 yards at the first - his tenth - was out with fellow Scot Robert MacIntyre and former Ryder Cup captain, Danish legend Thomas Bjørn.

A two-time winner this season – at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters back in March and at the ISPS Handa World Invitational presented by Aviv Clinics three weeks ago – Ferguson enjoyed the company on his way to his 63.

Ewen Ferguson/Bob MacIntyre

He said: “It was the first time I’d played with Thomas and obviously I’ve played with Bob since I was, well, in nappies, so it was a good, fun group.

“Thomas was saying he couldn’t believe how much us Scots moan, but I think he matched us pretty well today (laughing).

“Obviously playing with those two drew a bit of a crowd so it was exciting being out there, I really enjoyed it and tried to make sure I embraced it.

“We’ve got a good run of tournaments coming up now so I’m looking forward to this stretch and this week is fantastic. I just played really good. Didn’t do anything wrong and just enjoyed my golf.”

Matthew Southgate

Like Ferguson, Southgate posted six birdies. He sandwiched an eagle at the fifth with gains at the fourth and sixth and picked up further shots by nailing putts from between 12 and 21 feet, at the ninth, tenth, 15th and 17th.

He said: “It was a lovely way to start. I played the Pro-Am yesterday and was late to bed and up early this morning and I was a bit of a zombie, so it was a bit of a surprise to get off to a nice start. It’s been coming for a while, I’ve been playing well, and it’s nice to get round one out of the way with a good score.

“The course is great, we’ve obviously been blessed with the weather this morning, it doesn’t get any better than this.”

Francesco Laporta, Rikard Karlberg, Richard Mansell, Søren Kjeldsen, Nicolai von Dellingshausen and Craig Howie are two shots off the pace while six players are on six under.

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